we were on a bus ride from washington to new orleans, trying to test the recent supreme court ruling that banned racial discrimination on buses across state lines. we tested the waiting rooms. restroom facilities. but here in charlotte, n.c., a young african-american tried to get a shoeshine at a greyhound bus station. he was arrested and taken to jail. on that same day, we traveled about 25 miles from here. i tried to enter a white waiting

room. we were met byn angry mob that bsn left us lying in a pool of blood -- an angry mob that beat us and left us lying in a pool of blood. some police officers last if we wanted to press charges. -- asked us if we wanted to press charges. we said, no, our struggle is not against individuals, but against unjust laws and customs. true freedom for every american. since then, america has made a lot of progress. we are a different society than we were in the 1961. and in 2008, we showed the world the truth promise of america when we elected president barack obama.

[cheers and applause] and years ago, a man inspired by president obama's election decided to come forward. he came to our washington office and said, i'm one of the people who beat you. i want to apologize. will you forgive me? i said i accept your apology. he started crying. [applause] he gave me a hug. i hugged him back. we botyh starte -- we both started crying. this man and i don't want to go back. we don't want to go back. [cheers and applause]

brothers and sisters, do you wanna go back? >> no! >> or do you want to keep america moving forward? >> yes! >> my dear friends, your vote is precious, almost sacred. it is the most powerful nonviolent tool we have to create a more perfect union. [cheers and applause] not too long ago, people had to pass -- pay a toll tax. a man was asked to carry the number of bubbles in a bar of soap. one was asked to count the -- all to keep them from casting their ballots. today, it is unbelievable that there are republican officials

trying to stop some people from voting. it changes the rules -- they are changing the rules to suppress the vote. the republican leader in the pennsylvania house even bragged that his state's new voter i.d. law will allow governor romney to win the state. that is not right. that is not fair. and that is not just. [cheers and applause] and sooner -- similar efforts have been made in texas, ohio, florida, wisconsin, arizona, georgia, and south carolina. i have seen this before. i lived this before. too many people struggled, suffered, and died to make it

possible for every american to exercise their right to vote. [cheers and applause] and we have come too far together to ever turn back! so, democrats, we must stand up, speak up, and speak out! [cheers and applause] we must march to the polls like never, ever before. we must come together and exercise our sacred right. and together, we will reelect

the man who will lead america forward, president barack obama! [cheers and applause] ♪ >> gay soldiers fought for american independence, consecrated the ground of gettysburg, manned the trenches along western front, who stormed

the beaches of iwo jima. their names are etched into the walls of our memorials. their headstones thought the grounds at arlington -- dot the ground at arlington. for a long time, your service has demanded a particular kind of sacrifice. you have been asked to carry the added burden of secrecy and isolation. all the while, you have to lives of four freedoms and privileges of citizenship that are not fully granted to you -- have put your lives on the line for freedoms and privileges of citizenship that are not fully granted to you. i am proud to sign a law that will put an end to don't ask, don't tell. this will strengthen our national security and uphold the ideals that our fighting men and women risk their lives to defend. no longer will tens of thousands of american in uniform be asked to live a lie or look over their shoulder in order to serve the

country that they loved. for we are not a nation that says don't ask, don't tell. we are a nation that says, out of money, we are one -- out of many, we are one. we are a nation that welcomes the service of every patriot. we are a nation that believes that all men and women are created equal. [cheers and applause] >> please welcome iraqi war veteran jason crow. [cheers and applause] >> thank you. i'm not a delegate and i'm not a politician. i'm a veteran. i was an army ranger captain and fought alongside this country prosperous soldiers in iraq and afghanistan -- this country's bravest soldiers in iraq and afghanistan. like all veterans, i swore an

oath to defend this country. our country made a promise, too. a promise to support us overseas and to fight for us when we came home. i am here tonight to say that president obama has kept that promise. >> yes, sir! >> i noticed -- i now live with my wife and son in the great state of colorado. many of the men and women with whom i served never returned home. others came home bearing visible and invisible scars of battle. when they and their families needed help, our commander in chief was there for them. from extending veterans benefits to strengthening the v.a. health system, president obama knows that the military is the standard for american values. it was wrong that men and women that i served with could be told that they were not good enough just because of their sexual orientation.

[applause] soldiers that i trusted with my life and fought alongside with could be discharged simply because of who they loved. president obama did the right thing by ending don't ask, don't tell. [cheers and applause] the choice is clear. in the biggest speech of his life, governor romney did not mention our troops in afghanistan even ones. president obama is thinking about members, thinking about service members, their families, and veterans every single day. all our service members and veterans deserve four more years of a president who has their back. that is why right now i am asking you to join me in supporting our president, our commander in chief, barack obama. thank you. [cheers and applause]

♪ ♪ >> ♪ i've been there, done that i ain't looking back

who says you can't go home? there's only one place that calls me their own home?ys you can't go who says you can't go back? been all around the world and, as a matter of fact, there's only one place i want to go ♪ >> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome grammy award winner mary j. blige. [cheers and applause]

>> thank you. thank you so much. hello, everybody. thank you so much. i feel so blessed and honored to be here for president obama once again. i mean, what a blessing. i just want to start this off by saying i am so thankful that the message has been that we are all in this together. it is real. that makes us all one -- one. as my friend bono has said. thank you. ♪ yeahh, yeah, whoa whoa is it getting better? or is still the same?

will it make it easy our new -- easy on you now? you've got someone to blame you said one love one life one need in the night one love put your hands together. we're all in this together. did i disappoint you? leave a bad taste in your mouth?

you act like you never have love night it's too late to bring the past out in the light we get to carry each other whoa whoa one love oh, whoa whoa have you come here for forgiveness? have you come here to raise the dead? have you come here to play

jesus to the lepers in your head? well, did i ask too much? more than a lot. you gave me nothing love is a temple love the higher law you ask me to enter but then you make me crawl and i can't be holding on to what you got when all you got is hurt one llove -- love one blood

one life you got to do what you should one life with each other sisters and my brothers one life but we're not the same we get to carry each other carry each other one, one, one one, whoa ♪ one life ♪ thank you.

thank you so much. [cheers and applause] hey! thank you so much. all right. so, now that it's been established that we are family, let's make this a family affair. obama, four more years! come on, make some noise! makke some -- make some noise! ♪ ♪ come on, everybody had gone down -- head on down mary j. is in the spot tonight

come on, baby party with me ♪

haters don't need no it's time to love one another we gonna celebrate all night let's have fun tonight, no fights turn that track way up high make you dance all night let's get it crunk upon up in this dancery

you gotta dance for me just dance for me. come on, y'all, dance ♪ thank you. [cheers and applause] >> ♪ power to the people power to the people

power to the people power to the people power to the people, right on say we want a revolution we better carry on right away ♪ >> please welcome florida congresswoman debbie wasserman schultz, democratic national committee chair. ♪ >> thank you. thank you so much. thank you. represent theto people of south florida. [applause] i was so honored when president

obama asked me to serve as the chair of the democratic party. thank you. but there is one job i am even more proud of and that's being a mom to my three kids. [cheers and applause] in 2008, i could see what 8 years of top-down economics were doing to their future. like so many of you, i worked day in and day out. together, we elected president obama! [cheers and applause] when i addressed our convention that year, i spoke about what the stakes were for our country. what i didn't tell you was how high the stakes were for my family. in 2007, i was diagnosed with

breast cancer. in 2008, right before the convention, i had one of seven surgeries i would have that year. i was fortunate, though. i had good insurance and great doctors. today, i stand before you as a survivor. [cheers and applause] but like every breast cancer survivor, i now have a pre- existing condition. i know what it is like to sit in that waiting room, wondering how many more anniversaries you will get with your husband, how many more birthdays you will

celebrate with your kids. i do not care how strong a woman you are. that moment is terrifying. and in america, no one should have to go through it without health insurance. [cheers and applause] no family should go broke just because a mom gets sick. when president obama passed health care reform, it was personal. when governor romney says he would repeal health -- repeal obama care and put insurance companies back in charge of a woman's health, that is personal, too. when he tries to take us back to the days when insurers could try to charges more just for being a woman or deny coverage to breast cancer survivors like me, that's personal. [applause] when he tries to take away a

woman's control over decisions that affect your health and reproductive choices and family, that's personal. [applause] this election is personal for every american. [applause] for the middle-class family in hollywood, florida. for the dreamer in miami beach. for the senior citizens that i need across south florida -- that i meet across south florida. one woman told me, debbie, thanks to the new law, i don't have to cut my pills in half each month. that's because president obama is closing the prescription drug doughnut hole. [cheers and applause] he strengthen medicare. he extended the life of the program by eight years.

and what governor romney and congressman ryan will not admit is that their plan would require current seniors to pay, on average, $600 more each year for prescription drugs. unacceptable. the romney-ryan plan would replace the guarantee of medicare with a voucher that would not even keep up with costs. congressman ryan said he wants medicare to be around for his grandkids. well, if that is the case, he had better vote for barack obama. [cheers and applause] i am a proud democrat. [cheers and applause] and i know you are, too. but the choice in this election has nothing to do with party and

everything to do with people. people who believe that a senior needs medicare more than a millionaire needs a tax cut. [cheers and applause] and people who believe our president's message to the middle class should be "we're on your side," not "you're on your own." these are president obama's priorities. they are our priorities. this fall, we will fight for them harder than ever. [cheers and applause] over the next two months, no one will outwork us. that's my promise to you. [applause] but my friends, i cannot keep that promise on my own. i need you to tell me keep it. so, when you feel too drained to register one more voter, when

you feel too tired to make one more phone call, or too exhausted to knock on one more door, i want you to dig just a little bit deeper, i want you to work just a little bit harder, and make sure you do not get weary. [applause] remember -- rememeber, this is personal. let's finish what we started and reelect president barack obama! thank you so much! [cheers and applause] ♪ >> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the convention share, antonio villaraigosa-- convention chair, antonio >> good evening.

to the california delegation -- i see you, and i love you. [applause] to my children who have been here all week, my family, i love you most of all. to the folks from north carolina and charlotte -- [applause] who have been such wonderful hosts, there is no hospitality quite like southern hospitality. you know, i am proud to be the mayor of the great city of los angeles, the city of america's hope and promise at the entertainment capital of the world, but i have to tell you -- when it comes to entertainment, too great stories and tall

tales, the republican convention gave hollywood a run for their money. you know, it has been a privilege of a lifetime to hold the gavel at this historic convention where tonight, barack obama will accept our party's nomination for a second term as president of the united states. [applause] look around you, everyone. this has been the most diverse, most inclusive convention ever held anywhere in the united states of america. [applause] a convention not just of symbolism, but of substance. this is the first time that a

major party platform recognizes marriages equality as a basic human right. [applause] and this is the reflection of who we are as a party and who we can be as a nation. because as democrats, as americans, whenever we have opened up our party and our country, whenever we have opened up our doors for more of our people, whenever we deepen our democracy and renew our commitment to equal justice under the law, we have grown stronger as a nation. last week, in tampa, we were

promised hard truths. they were right about one thing -- the truth was hard to find. [applause] that is why they did not talk about their plan to cut taxes for millionaires by raising taxes on middle-class families with kids, on your family, by $2,000. they did not talk about their plan to replace the guarantee of medicare with a coupon, with a voucher that might not cover the cost of care and could force seniors to pay up to $6,400 more a year. they did not talk about their plan to deny a woman control over the basic decisions that affect her health. no, the romney campaign bragged that it would not be dictated by fact checkers.

what they meant is that their campaign would not be dictated by facts. [applause] they said they have a plan, but they did not share it because they know it is not a plan that the american people want. americans do not want to go backwards. they want to go forward. that is what president obama's plan will do. by investing in education and manufacturing, bringing clean energy jobs to our shores, ending wars abroad, and doing some nation-building here at home. we know that some of our republican friends may not have agreed with everything they have heard here in charlotte, but at least they heard the facts. they heard solutions. they heard an honest description of the choice we face.

tonight, they will hear from a president who is fighting for all of us. [applause] in his first term, he fought for the students trying to pay for college. he fought for the small business owner striving for a piece of the american dream. he fought for the men and women in uniform who are fighting for us. [applause] he fought for the woman who deserves health care that is there for her when she needs it. and he fought for the dreamers. young people brought here as children through no fault of their own. instead of supporting their

dreams, governor romney wants to make life so miserable, so oppressive, so intolerable for them that they would leave the life they have built behind, leave their children behind, and self-deport. how about that for family values? but we believe we are a better country than that. thanks to president obama, as we keep on fighting for the dream act, they can remain in the country that they love. [applause] you know, in l.a., we know that communities are stronger for their diversity. from westwood to wilmington, from silver lake to sherman oaks. we may come from different backgrounds. we may speak different languages. we may even worship in different

ways, but all of us, no matter our accent or our ancestry, are pursuing the same american dream. it is the dream that brought my grandfather here from mexico to los angeles a century ago with no money, even less english, but an unshakable faith in the relationship between work and reward. it is the dream that allowed his grandson, the son of a single mom, to graduate from ucla. and, you know some people -- i got there on an affirmative- action program. some people would say i came in through the back door, but one thing is for sure -- i got out the front. [applause] that is the open, inclusive america we love. i went to work for farm workers

and teachers. i went on to become the speaker of the california state assembly and now mayor of the city of los angeles. [applause] you know, i know how i got here -- i worked hard. i grew up in an america where hard work paid off. that is the promise of this great country. this week, we came to charlotte to restore that promise. while this convention ends tonight, our work is not done. in the days and weeks ahead, we will register more voters, knocked on more doors, get out more votes for this party and this president -- knock on more doors. we are going to send barack obama back to the white house. i love you. thank you and god bless america. [applause] ♪

>> please welcome congresswoman tammy baldwin from wisconsin. [applause] >> on behalf of the great state of wisconsin and our proud, progressive tradition, thank you. i know you have heard a lot about wisconsin lately. you have heard about paul ryan, who wants to end medicare as we know it. you have heard about scott walker, who took basic rights away from teachers, nurses, and public employees. maybe you had even heard about tommy thompson, our former governor who went to washington, cash in on his special interest connections, and never really came back -- cashed in on his

special interest connections. i am here to tell you that they do not speak for all of wisconsin, and i want you to hear about the wisconsin that i know -- the place where my grandparents raised me, the place where generations of families have worked hard to get ahead, the place where our state modern -- mono mo -- motto might sound familiar to you. it is just one word -- forward. we believe that to prosper, everyone has to have a fair shot and everyone has to have -- do their fair share. that is why i'm proud to lead the charge for the buffet rule, which makes sure that millionaire and billionaires' still get to pay a lower tax rate than hard working american families, and president of omni -- president obama stands with me -- i'm proud to lead the charge against the buffet rule. the wisconsin i know knows that

their plan will only bust our budget, not boost our economy. we believe in a level playing field. more than a decade ago, the big wall street banks came to congress and asked us to repeal an important law called glass- steagall, allowing them to gamble like hedge funds. to many in washington said yes -- too many in washington said yes. i said no. i fought to make wall street play by the same rules as main street. president obama fought for that reform. mitt romney wants to repeal it. but the wisconsin i know knows that having two sets of rules makes no kind of sense. in wisconsin, we believe in hard work. for decades, we have worked to make things -- paper, engines,

tools, ships, and, yes, cheese, brats, and beer. give our workers a fair shot, and we will compete against anyone. that is why i am taking on china's cheating and betting on wisconsin workers. president obama believes in our manufacturers. that is why he is standing with me to support companies creating jobs here and not shipping them overseas. mitt romney wants to give up on our manufacturing sector, but the wisconsin and i know knows that an economy built to last says "made in america" on the label. [applause] and we believe that american history moves in one direction -- forward. our president has made historic progress towards equality. he repealed don't ask, don't tell, so that no american ever

again have to lie about who they are in order to serve the country we love. republicans want to write discrimination into our constitution, but he does -- the wisconsin i know believes that with each passing year and each generation, our country must become more equal, not less. [applause] mitt romney, paul ryan, scott walker, tommy thompson -- they think they are the only ones who speaks for wisconsin, but come november, the wisconsin i know, the america i love will speak out loud and clear and keep us moving forward, forward with a strong middle-class, forward on a path to prosperity, and forward with president obama. [applause]

>> delegates and guests, please welcome philadelphia mayor michael nutter. >> i am honored to serve as mayor of my hometown, philadelphia, pennsylvania. when our founders started america with three simple words -- "we the people" -- and when they said "people," they did not mean corporations. i am honored to be the father of christian and olivia and a proud parent of a current high school student. my wife lisa and i know that olivia's education is central to everything that she and everyone in our city wants to achieve.

in philadelphia, our public education, poverty reduction, health, and economic development all start with education. we cannot grow the middle class if we do not give our kids the tools they need to innovate and invest, but first, we have to invest in them. that is what president barack obama did -- saving 400,000 educators' jobs and giving states the flexibility to shape their schools. mitt romney does not get it. he recently visited a school in west philly and told teachers that he knows more than they do about what works for their students. he said class size does not matter. >> boo! >> does not matter? if our teachers cannot give the children the attention they need, that does not matter? if our students spend the day on

their feet or the floor because there are not enough desks in a crowded classroom, that does not matter? let me tell you who it does matter to -- it matters to olivia. it matters to her classmates. it matters to all of our public school students in philadelphia, and that is what matters. [applause] to mitt romney, education is a luxury. as governor, he vetoed universal." -- universal pre-k. in his first year, public schools of cuts that led to dramatic layoffs. he failed students. what does he learn from all this? all the wrong lessons. he failed the education test and now wants a promotion. his budget would mean fewer teachers and bigger class sizes. it would mean fewer pell grants costing our country millions of college graduates, and he wants to put big banks back in the student loan business. just ask him about affording

college like one high schooler did in ohio. romney's answer -- shop around. here are some wiser words from a great philadelphian, ben franklin. he said an investment in knowledge paves the best interests. sounds like mitt romney could stand to learn a thing or two about investing. our economy grows from the middle out, not the top down. we are all in this together. i learned that lesson a growing up in west philly. when i shoveled the sidewalk, my parents did not let me stop with our house. they told me to keep shoveling all the way to the corner. i had a responsibility to my community, and that is what being mayor is all about. we take care of our own. we keep our neighbors safe, clear the snow from their streets, educate their kids. we get stuff done.

for barack obama, that is what being president is all about. he knows coming together as a nation starts by coming together as neighbors. that is why, after graduating, barack obama went to a chicago neighborhood to help jobless workers in the shadow of a closed-down steel mill. after mitt romney graduated, he became a corporate buyout specialist who closed down steel mills. whose values do you want in the oval office? i know who i want, and i know who philly wants, and i know who pennsylvania wants, and i know who you want, and i know who the middle class needs -- president barack obama. [applause]

♪ [applause] >> i could not be prouder of the work we have done on behalf of the lgbt community. it is no secret that progress has been incredibly difficult. it is about capacity to love and commit to one another. it is about whether or not we value as a society that love and commitment. it is about our common humanity and our willingness to walk in someone else's shoes. imagine worrying about as fast -- a spouse in the hospital with the added fear that you will have to produce a legal document to come for the person you love. imagine losing a partner of decades and finding the law treats you like a stranger. we still have a long way to go, but we will get there. my expectation is that when you look back on these years, you will see a time in which we put

a stop to discrimination against gays and lesbians. you will see a time in which we as a nation finally recognize relationships between two men or two women as just as real and admirable as relationships between a man and woman. you will see a nation that is valuing and cherishing these families as we have built a more perfect union. [applause] it does not matter what you look like or where you come from or who you love -- you can dream big dreams. [applause] >> please welcome zack walsh of ios city, iowa -- iowa city. >> thank you, charlotte. my name is zack walls.

i am is sixth generation iowan, an eagle scout, and i was raised by my two moms -- jackie and terry. people always want to know what it is like having a lesbian parents. i will let you in on a little secret -- i am awesome at putting the seat down. otherwise, we are like any other family. we eat dinner, go to church, have a choice, but some people do not see it that way. when i was well, watching the 2004 republican convention, i remember politicians talking about protecting marriage from families like mine. supporting a view of marriage as between a man and woman is not radical. for many people, it is a matter of faith. we respect that. watching the convention on tv, though, i felt confused,

frustrated. why did they not think my family was a real family? governor romney says he is against same-sex marriage because every child deserves a mother and father. i think every child deserves a family as loving and committed as mine. [applause] because defense of family comes in the commitment we make to each other through the hard times so we can enjoy the good ones. it comes from the love that binds us. that is what makes a family. mr. romney, my family is just as real as yours. [applause] president obama understands that. he supports my moms' marriage. president obama put his political future on the line to do what was right. without his leadership, we would not be here. president obama is fighting for

our families -- all our families. he has our backs, and ladies and gentlemen, we have his. [applause] thank you, charlotte, and thank you, president obama. [applause] fighter where did they go fighter where did they go ♪ i am edith child's from greenwood, south carolina, and i am the one that got barack obama

fired up. >> i want to close with a story that some of you know because it shows you the importance of one voice, and it is a story about my first trip to greenwood. >> when i heard that he was coming, i thought that i would just go and welcome him. >> turns out that greenwood is about an hour-and-a-half from everywhere else. >> it is a little bit out of the way. >> so we drive. we drive and we drive. finally, we get to greenwood. we pull up to a small building. >> right here in this building, the civic center. >> it is pouring down rain. my umbrella blows open. and i got soaked. i am mad. i am wet. we go inside, and lo and behold, after an hour and a half drive, turns out there are 20 people there. >> when he first came in the room, he had this grin on his

face like, cassette and maybe i am in the wrong place." you know, it is a small group of people. -- "may be i am in the wrong place." than 20 people, and they are kind of sleepy like maybe they do not want to be there either. >> looking around everyone in the room, i knew we had to do something. >> suddenly, i hear this voice cry out behind me, "fire up!" i'm shocked. >> i know the senator was not sure what was going on because he had that look on his face. >> i look behind me, and there's the small woman. looked like she just came from church -- got a big church hat. she is standing there. she looks at me, and she is smiling, and she says -- >> fired up! ready to go. i knew we need to keep saying it. >> for the next five minutes,

she proceeds to do that. fired up, and they say fired up. she says ready to go, and they say ready to go. i'm sitting there thinking that she is stealing my thunder. i look at my staff. they shrug their shoulders. they do not know how long this will go. but here is the thing, virginia -- after a minute or so, i'm feeling kind of fired up. i'm feeling like i'm ready to go. so i join in the chant. i feel good. for the rest of the day, even after we left greenwood, i say to my staff, "are you fired up?" they say, "we are fired up. are you ready to go?" i say, cassette and i'm ready go." -- "i'm ready to people cited putting it on

signs. it shows you what one voice can do. one voice can change a room. and if a voice can change a room, it can change a city, and if it can change a city, it can change a state. if it can change a state, it can change a nation. if it can change a nation, it can change the world. your voice can change the world. so i've just got one question for you -- are you fired up? [applause] are you ready to go? [applause] fired up! ready to go! fired up! ready to go! fired up! >> fired at! -- up! >> ready to go! >> ready to go!

>> let's go change the world. [applause] >> please welcome president obama's 2012 campaign manager. >> i am so proud to represent the millions of volunteers who make up the vast grass roots organization -- the best grass roots organization in the history of american politics. let's hear it for our team leaders, the heart and soul of our grass-roots army. i was disappointed we could not have the tens of thousands of people who wanted to be with us tonight in the stadium, but i am so happy that there are over 5000 -- over america. here's a few of them.

we will talk to one right now. all right. are you fired up? every morning, the first thing i read out of the numbers i read from the day before. not poll numbers for money, the numbers that mean something -- door knocks, conversation, registered voters. our volunteers made 43 million calls and knocked on -- we registered more than 1 million voters, already more than we did in 2008. no state has registered more people than the great blue state of north carolina. [applause] we are doing exactly what the republicans do not want us to do -- getting more people involved in our democracy. giving more americans a voice in their future.

here is how the greatest grassroots organization in the history of american campaigns is going to do just that. first, register to vote right now. go to gottaregister.com. second, if you are already registered, go to commit.barakobama.com. we need each and everyone of you to commit to vote for barack obama. third, take up your phone. for the first time and political history, you can donate by taxiexting. 62262, text give donate $10. voting starts in three weeks. there is no time to lose. if you want to protect health reform, if you want a clean energy future, make some phone

calls. if you think our kids should have more teachers and billionaire should have fewer tax breaks, spread the word online. this election is not about barack obama or mitt romney, it is about you. the other guy's thing right $10 million checks. we have made the campaign that on the. tuesday is election day. thank you. [applause] ♪ >> cleveland is a working-class

city. i married the love of my life here. raise two kids here. this is my home. i live in toledo, ohio. i work at a transmission plant for 28 years. you make something, you put everything you have into it. there is a sense of pride. when the downturn happened, i got laid off. it was shocking. we were not sure what we were going to do. until the industry had done them, it would not have been made. it would have been a corner stores, toledo would have been a ghost town. president obama understood what needed to be done. >> it is an iconic industry. it is part of what build our middle class. it was not just a million jobs, it is what the auto industry has always meant to america. >> president obama was not going

to let the auto industry die. he believed in us. he supported us. >> do not bet against the american worker. >> it is because of him, i am working again. i am very happy. we need to keep moving forward. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> we do not sit around here. we do expect our government to fight for us. that is exactly what president obama did. >> and working people like you. [applause] ♪ >> please welcome mrs. jones

from toledo, ohio, joined on the stage. >> good evening. i am from toledo, ohio. [applause] after i was laid off from general motors transmission assembly plant in 2009, i did not sit around feeling sorry for myself. instead, i started training people with basic skills so when the jobs came back, they would be ready. thank you president obama. these jobs did come back. he knows that america needs our jobs. what happens to the auto industry happens to america.

president obama saved our committee. he saved working america. he is my hero. there are heroes all across america. joining me on stage are some of those heroes who the president met on his road to charlotte. people who displayed the quiet heroism we see so often in this country. dead is a vietnam war veteran who for nine years has been placing a welcome an arm around soldiers returning from iraq and afghanistan. he has helped them to readjust to civilian life, prepare for jobs, and come home again. lucas is now iraq war veteran so

committed that when he ran for office from abroad, he was elected as the only democrat on the board of supervisors. rob hawk and his wife are entrepreneurs who worked hard building their clean energy businesses in iowa. after 10 years of hard work, that business nell employee is 27 people. marta is a third grade teacher at st. joseph's school in cleveland, ohio. [applause] on her time, she teaches english to students who come

from more than a half-dozen countries. ryan overcame personal tragedy and committed himself to his future by going back to school thanks to president obama's support of grants. [applause] today, he has committed to expanding the opportunity for other young people by encouraging them to reelect president obama. [applause] these are the people who make our community is a strong pair and make us all proud. please join me in acknowledging these american heroes. [applause]

>> please welcome the care of the 2012 democratic national convention, los angeles mayor and tanya de rigueur osama -- the los angeles mayor. >> only one candidate is qualified to be the nominee of our party for vice president of the united states. [applause]

alan next speaker will place before you that nomination. [applause] >> please welcome delaware attorney general joe biden. [applause] >> my dad is joe biden. a few years ago, he wrote a memoir. he quoted a line from robert frost was a famous poem. he called the "promises to keep ." you have seen my father partner with president obama to keep the promises they made and the sacred promises we made, the promises we made to our elderly

who have earned a dignified retirement. the promises we make to allow children, who deserve a chance to succeed. the promises we make that if you play by the rules and work hard, things will work out. one of those promises is to a group of people close to my heart. my brothers and sisters in uniform. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, the stakes are high for our country. there will be and should be a debate about two different paths. there should be no debate about our shared commitment to take care of our veterans. four years ago, i told you that my father has always been there for me, my sister, and as vice president, he would be there for you. he has.

i have seen it. i have seen it up close and personal. i have watched him use more than three decades of experience on both sides of the aisle. to move a vital legislation, just like he did with the violence against women act. [applause] i have watched him push relationships with the allies. i have seen him make visits to veterans' hospitals. private phone calls to the families of first responders killed in the line of duty. i have seen him salute the workers in factories. i have seen him shake the hand of every single high-school student in a graduating class of 900 because he wants those kids to remember the day they got their diplomas and to do something big with them.

for me, the most memorable moment of the past four years was not something most americans saw. in fact, it was not even on american soil. it took place in iraq. i was stationed. it was the fourth of july in 2009. my father was there in one of his many trips to the region. as part of his work to bring the war to an end. [applause] i had the privilege to watch him lead a ceremony for a couple hundred men and women from all branches of our military. as he led those new americans, the celebration of democracy, in a land of the deposed dictator, i was struck by the strength and diversity of our country. i was reminded why we are stronger when everyone has a

chance to do their part. i was reminded of everything president obama and my father had done to guarantee that chance. we do have promises to keep. my dad and barack obama are keeping them. [applause] yes, we have miles to go before we sleep. barack obama and joe biden are leading the way fourth. four years ago, because i was going to iraq, i ask you to be there for my dad. you were. for the last four years, i can say with certainty, he has been there for us. [applause] in moments both public and private, he is the father i have always known, the grandfather my children love and adore.

the vice president alan nation needs. tonight, it is my great honor to put forth for nomination of the office of vice-president, my father, my hero, joe biden. nominate joe biden as the democratic vice presidential candidate. [applause] >> i never joe must be emotional right now. his son called to his hero. you have to feel it in the

heart. we have a motion to nominate joe biden by acclamation as the democratic party posts of vice presidential candidate. is there a second? [applause] all in favor say aye. the ayes have it. the motion is adopted. joe biden has been invited to make an acceptance speech. ♪ [applause]

♪ ♪ >> for the fifth straight month, the u.s. economy lost jobs. >> a meltdown in the mortgage industry. >> this is the biggest point drop seen in a day. >> the worst financial collapse

since the great depression. >> american workers were laid off in numbers not seen in three decades. >> whoever wins is going to come in facing a deep recession, facing trillions of liabilities. >> this is a once in a century type of event. >> today, i say to you, the challenges we face a real. they are serious and they are many. they will not be met easily. they will be met. >> on the day barack obama took office, america had already lost 4.4 million jobs. an economic disaster, the worst in a generation. some said america's best days were behind us. like america, he dug deeper, fought back, and never lost faith in our ability to meet the challenge. the stimulus plan saved up to

4.2 million jobs, including teachers, construction workers, police and firefighters. when a flagship of the american economy was going down, his auto recipe forced companies and workers to restructure, saving 1.1 million jobs. >> today, for the first time, all 3 u.s. auto makers are operating at a profit. do not bet against the american worker. >> instead of losing jobs, we are gaining them. the first increase in a decade. over the last 25 months, 4.1 million private sector jobs. while there is still more to do, there has been progress. president obama never stopped believing in us and fighting for us. he took on the credit card companies, stopping unfair fees. he took on the wall street banks, fighting for tough new

reforms to make sure they never again wreck the economy. he passed historic health reforms. insurance companies cannot deny children coverage for pre- existing conditions. seniors pay less for prescriptions. contraception coverage, guaranteed. by 2016, 32 million more americans will have health coverage. wind and solar power has doubled. historic lows. college loans, more affordable and easier to repay. equal pay for women, protected by a new law. do not ask did not tell, history. hardware, determination, real result. instead of working together to lift america up, republicans were waging a campaign to tear him down. >> every republican has decided

to say no to anything the president proposes. >> a vote no. >> they are getting a rap as a party of no. >> our top political priority should be to deny president obama a second term. >> still, he persevered. here at home and as commander in chief. >> another huge victory in the war on terror. >> then, there was the victory no one saw coming. >> a special report. breaking news. >> tonight, i can report to the american people and to the world that the united states has conducted an operation that killed osama bin laden. a terrorist who is responsible

for the murder of thousands of innocent men, women, and children. >> this is one of those moments, people will remember where they were when they heard. >> now, the war in iraq is over. >> for nine years, our nation has been at war in iraq. on behalf of a grateful nation, i am proud to finally say these two words, welcome home. [applause] >> a promise kept by a president who understood america's promise. who understands that america's greatness comes from a strong, secure middle class. that is the america president obama believes in. that is what he is fighting for every day.

♪ ♪

>> this is a make or break moment for the middle class and for all of those who are fighting to get into the middle class. what is at stake is whether this will be a country where work and people can earn enough to raise a family, own a home, secure their retirement. i believe this country succeeds when everyone gets a fair shot. when everyone does their fair share. when everyone plays by the same rules. i believe america is on the way up. thank you. god bless you. god bless the united states of america. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the foo fighters.

♪ >> thank you very much. it is an honor to be here. i think this song makes perfect sense here tonight. ♪ [foo fighters "there goes my hero" playing] ♪

o ♪here goes my her fighters playing "there goes my hero"] ♪

♪ [piano playing] ♪ [foo fighters playing "there goes my hero"] ♪

♪ [applause] ♪ ♪ playingighters

"learning to walk again"] ♪ ♪

playingighters "learning to walk again"] ♪

♪

♪ [foo fighters playing "learning to walk again"] ♪ ♪

>> thank you very much. [applause] [cheers and applause] [applause] >> we are at a generous people. >> we are able to help other people because we are thriving.

>> we are at our best when we say that we want the same kind of chance that we have had for others. >> i am not asking for millions of dollars. just a stable home. a stable family. >> people being able to find their own way. i hope i am among those people. >> i think all of america is interested in education and a better opportunity for their children. >> to be able to retire, to be able to purchase a home. >> everyone can support their families with dignity. >> there was a lot we did not have. it did not bother us not have it. the one thing we did have was the knowledge that if you got yourself educated and worked hard, there was going to be a future for you. >> it was the home i was blessed to grow up in. it was two parents.

they said, we do not think we did anything special. we did what we should have done perry >> the middle class has been the backbone of our society. when the middle class is up against it, as it has been, particularly during the bush years, our whole social order is in peril. >> we did everything right. we worked our way through college. we got good jobs. we did not make any financial mistakes. we tried to save up. we were doing everything we were told we were supposed to do. i recognize that we are one mistake away from losing what we have. >> the republicans, they refuse to texas billionaire's and millionaires. -- to tax billionaires' and

millionaires. it is crazy. >> would you want to be a person without health care? would you want to be in that person's shoes? i think you should think about how the things you vote for impact society. >> we had a health scare in my own family. there was a time when we had no insurance. that set us back like you cannot imagine. >> we have to give our society and the people who are going to be the engines of our society the resources to build the future. >> it is going to take time. it cannot be solved overnight. >> president obama knows what direction this country needs to go. >> the opportunity to work a decent job. >> solid health care. >> looking forward to retirement. >> outstanding education. >> this country is based on

those advantages for everyone. not just people who are at the higher income levels. >> this election is more important than any. it is so clear, the stark contrast of the two parties. he should ask, what future do i want? >> what does my candidates stand for? does he have my interests at heart? have they experienced the problem? >> do they really mean it? >> who speaks the truth? >> who shares a world fee that we are all in it together? then nobody can succeed alone. you go out there, you rally, you vote your conscience. you hope for the best. >> last century was the american century. >> this is such an incredible country. this is such a bountiful country. this is such a good country. >> i believe it can be the

second great american century. what we do over the next few months is going to have a lot to do with that. >> i am voting for barack obama. the reason why is because his message comes across crystal clear. he believes in us. he wants us to all the better. -- do better. [applause] ♪ >> please welcome congressman james clyburn. [applause] >> thank you. thank you. good evening. hello, south carolina. [applause] 52 years ago, president kennedy accepted our party posts a nomination saying, we're not here to curse the darkness.

we are here to light a candle. that is the fundamental difference between the party of barack obama and the party of romney. president obama has lit candle after candles, bring in our country out from the darkness of recession, only to see republicans douse the flames and amuse themselves, cursing the darkness. the romney-ryan republicans have walked away from bipartisan efforts, to responsible approaches to move the country forward. bring in only more darkness. the architect of the republicans is none other than paul ryan. the romney-ryan plan will cut taxes for the wealthiest 1%, end

the guarantee of medicare, and it will try to balance the budget on the backs of hard- working americans. too many of our senior citizens who are living their golden years in the darkness, the democratic president and the democratic congress created social security, lighting a candle. while the republicans cursed the darkness. when too many of our elderly found their lives darkened by unaffordable and an acceptable health care, lyndon johnson and a democratic congress lit the candles of medicare and medicaid. while republicans stood on the sideline and curse the darkness when the economy of our country, language and uncertainty, william jefferson clinton and a democratic congress lit the candle that

eliminated the path to prosperity. reducing the deficit and creating 20 million jobs. we did it with every republican cursing the darkness. when president obama was sworn into office, the economy was losing over 700,000 jobs per month. affordable quality care was unfulfilled. bin laden was plotting attacks while our troops were bogged down in iraq. president obama went to work. he lighted candles. he promised to bring osama bin laden to justice. done. [applause] he promised to end the war in iraq. done. [applause] he promised to make membership

in a kid it is high risk occupation and begin winding down the role in afghanistan. done. he championed a veteran's job corps to put our returning veterans back to work. savedent obama's actions jobs throughout the automobile industry, 1.1 million jobs overall. now, ford and chrysler are making record profits again. general motors has regained its position as number 1. [applause] couragesident obama's made affordable, accessible quality health care it right, not a privilege. [applause] we should not run from the term obamacare. i am glad obama cares.

[applause] because obama cares, children born with diabetes can no longer be denied coverage. because obama cares, people with illnesses can never -- no longer be dropped from coverage when they get sick. families will no longer have their benefits kept. -- capped. romans 13, verse 12, the night is far spent, the day is at hand. let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of like. let us go from this place, lighting candles all across this great country and reelect president barack obama and vice president joe biden so they can continue lighting candles and moving this country forward. [applause]

♪ >> ladies and gentleman, please welcome carry washington. [applause] >> i am so grateful to be here with you tonight. i am here, not just as an actress. as a woman, an african- american, a granddaughter of immigrants who came through ellis island, a person who could not have afforded college without the help of student loans, and as one of millions of

volunteers working to re-elect president obama. [applause] so many people have struggled so that you and i, all of us, could have a voice in this great democracy and live up to those first three word of our constitution, we the people. i love that phrase. i really do. so much because throughout our country's history, we have expanded the meaning of that for is to include more and more of us. that is what it means to move forward. that is what this election is about. it is why we cannot sit on the sidelines. whether it is school, work, family, we have a lot on our minds. we hear people say, i am too busy. here is the thing, you may not be thinking about politics, but

politics is thinking about you. today, there are people out there trying to take away rights that our mothers, our grandmothers, and our great- grandmother's fought for. writes that we fought for. at a right to vote. i were right to choose. our right to affordable, quality education, equal pay, access to health care, and we, the people, cannot let that happen. [applause] we want you to know that tonight, even as this convention is coming to a close, a movement is building around our country. the other side wants to take our voices away.

to render us invisible. but we are not invisible. [applause] from a home in iowa to a yogurt shop in colorado, friends and neighbors have gathered for 5000 watch parties. they are committed to this campaign. all of us, together, we will reelect president obama. [applause] but, none of us can be silenced. we need all of us in this network. we will win this election because we are the people. [applause]

>> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome scarlett joe hansen. ♪ ♪ >> thank you. it is an honor to be here tonight. i speak to you, not as a representative of young hollywood, but as a representative of the many millions of the americans who depend on public and non-profit programs to help them survive. [applause] i grew up in new york city. [applause] i grew up with four siblings, my

father made enough to get -- barely made enough to get by. we moved every year. we finally settled in a housing development. we went to public schools. we depended on programs for school transport and lunches. my friends from high school still depend on planned parenthood and often medicaid for important health care services. [applause] in 2008, less than half of all eligible voters between the ages of 18 and 24 voted. less than half. young america, why are we only speaking with half our voice when so many issues directly affect us? [applause] you know who i am voting for, i am not going to tell you who to vote for. i am here to ask you to commit to vote.

it has never been easier than that. you can go to commit.barakobama.com to register tim it is that is the. earlier this week, a chelsea clinton reminded us that we are the generation who feels our voices have not been heard. so vote so that your post is heard-- voice is heard. over the last two days we have been reminded of something we forgot, what has been accomplished, and what is at stake. whether we can get health care, afford college, all of these things are at great, great risk. that is why i am here today to use whatever attention i am fortunate enough to receive to shed the spotlight on what is at stake for all of us. [applause]

when i was a little girl, my mother, she is a registered democrat -- [applause] she would take me into the polling booth and tell me what buttons to press. is that even legal? i do not know. [laughter] i remember the excitement i felt in the box. i felt like my mom's vote was not just about the candidate, it was about the family and all the families in the community. the last election, i finally got to touch those buttons for real, for me. i was so excited, i wore my "i voted" pin the whole day. this year, on november 6, i am filled with that same pride. to press the button to reelect president barack obama. [applause]

so get out there, exercise your right to vote. thank you. [applause] ♪ ♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

[applause] ♪ ♪ ♪ [aretha franklin's "think" playing] ♪

franklin's "think" playing] ♪

[applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome gabrielle giffords, accompanied by debbie wasserman schultz to lead us in the pledge of allegiance. boom pulli [applause]

[applause] >> i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands one nation under god indivisible with liberty and

justice for all [applause] [applause]

now it is up to a new generation, our children's generation to carry it forward. let me say to the young and the young at heart, barack obama is only president because he worked for him. because you believed in him. phil because you convinced your parents to vote for them. young people have always led america toward a brighter future. it happened in 1960. it happened in 2008. if you show the same spirit in this election as he did at last, i know it will make history again on november 6. thank you.

[applause] >> please welcome the

>> that is barack " obama and michelle obama's story. my father was a construction worker. he built our highways. my mother arrived in this country as a newlywed with no money, and no family. together, they realized the dream of sending their four children to college. the american dream. in any language, that is what this election is about. we need president obama for four more years to keep that dream alive. when president obama was elected, the american dream was on life-support.

the middle class was being hauled out. we cannot afford to go back to the failed policies of the past. maybe governor romney has forgotten how he got into the mess that president obama faced. we have not. two wars, tax breaks for the wealthiest, the wall street bailout, katrina. nearly 9 million americans lost their jobs because of the great recession. our teachers, firefighters, and police officers were laid off, and our small businesses could not get the bail out banks to offer them any credit. how many construction workers like my father do you think the dream of reaching the middle class under those conditions? we have all heard the saying, put your money where your mouth is.

well, governor romney, ante up. show us how your economic policies differ from president bush's. if you believe in america, you invest in america. we do not need someone who will be a poster child for the cayman islands city in the oval office. i ask you. is it courageous to cut funding for college loans or to vow to veto the dream for children? is it responsible to reward companies that ship american jobs overseas with more tax loopholes? is it bold to say our country is broke and then hand out yet another deficit-busting tax break to millionaires?

is it right to pull the rug out from under older americans after a lifetime of hard work and turn medicare into a voucher system? coupon care. really, mr. romney? coupon care? if you want to save the middle class, you do not outsource it. you strengthen it. if you want to get america back to work, you do not fire cops, teachers, and firefighters. you invest in them. president obama is fighting for the middle class. he is fighting to put americans back to work and our country back on track. president obama believes in the promise of america. president obama believes in you. [applause]

the american dream. for it, andch for ied this fall, we will vote for it. we will re-elect barack obama, president of the united states. [applause] >> ladies and adamant, please welcome the michigan governor. >> good evening. am from the great state of michigan. where the trees are just the right height.

let me tell you a story about the dark days in my home state. toward the end of my time as governor, ford closed one of its biggest factories in michigan. the plants had been played over the years thousands of middle- class men and women. worlds away from the place mitt romney was raised. ford's decision to close a factory hit, and i went down to the local union hall and it was almost empty. a few workers were in a shape -- in a state of shock and grief. i talked to a 45-year-old guy who told me, this is the only place i have ever worked. i have been loyal, i have done everything they have ever asked, and just like that, it is gone. he looked around the hall and he said, so, governor, is it over

for us? is the american auto industry dead? honestly, at that moment, i did not know. that was just the beginning. when the financial crisis hit, e.ings got worked -- wors with it, the entire manufacturing sector of this country, and we looked everywhere for help. almost nobody had the guts to help us, not the banks, not the private investors, and not bain capital. [applause] but, in 2009, the calvary president,d i kneour new

.arack obama, came in and abo he made the tough calls and he saved the american auto industry. [applause] you know, you know, mitt romney, he saw the same crisis and do you know what he said? let it go bankrupt. sure, sure, mitt romney loves our lakes and never trees. he loves our car is so much they have their own elevator. but the people who design and build and sell those cars, in on the's world, the cars get the elevator and the workers get the shaft. [cheers and applause] you know what i am saying.

you know what i am saying. mitt romney, he says, he says that his business experience qualifies him to be president. sure, he has made a lot of money. good for him. maybe i should say, good for him, but how did he make the fortune? and at whose expense? you know he made it too often at the expense of middle class americans year after year. it was profit before people. but, president obama, with the auto rescue, he saved more than 1 million american jobs, but it was not just missed again. -- just michigan. in colorado, the auto rescue saved more than 9000 jobs. in virginia, virginia, more than

19,000 jobs. in north carolina, 25,000 jobs. in wisconsin, wisconsin, 28,000 jobs. in pennsylvania, 34,000 jobs. in florida, 35,000 jobs. in ohio, 150,000 jobs. in the great state of michigan, 211,000 jobs. all across america, manufacturing is rebounding. why? [cheers and applause] audience: usa!

usa! usa! usa! usa! usa! >> because, when mitt romney did say let it go bankrupt, who took the wheel? barack obama. when america was losing 700 tickets thousand jobs in vermont, who gave us a lift? barack obama. when american markets went down, the job started our engine? barack obama when america needed it most, who got us rolling again on the road to recovery? barack obama. comerica, we need to rev up our engines in your car and on your ballot. the d is for drive forward, the r is for reverse.

let's re-elect our great president, barack obama. [cheers and applause] ♪ >> delegates and guests, please welcome actress eva logorrhea. >> hello, charlotte. i have to say hello to texas.

i have to tell you, i have been in a lot -- on a lot of stages in my life, but not as important as this one. i am honored to be here as co- chair of president obama's reelection campaign. i feel fortunate to be standing on the stage tonight and i never could have imagined it growing up. i was born in texas. [applause] i am the youngest of four girls, including my older sister, lisa, who has special needs. my mom was a special-education teacher and my dad worked on the army base. we were not wealthy. but we were determined to succeed. in my family, there was one priority -- education. for me, college was not an option. it was mandatory. even though we did not have a

lot of money, we made it work. i signed up for financial aid, anything i could. just like our president and first lady, i took out loans to pay for school. i change the oil in a mechanic shop. i flip burgers at wendy's. i worked on campus to pay those loans back. i did whatever it up and four years later, i got my degree. [applause] more importantly, i got a key to american opportunity because that is who we are, a nation that rewards ambition with opportunity, where hard work can lead to success no matter where you start. i said -- i have seen americans of every background fighting to succeed. they are optimistic, ambitious, and hardworking.

they also want to know their hard work will pay off. we are lucky that our president understands the value of american opportunity because he has lived it. [applause] he is fighting to help others achieve it. he is fighting to make college more affordable. he has cut taxes for every american. he is helping small businesses get loans and is cutting -- has cut their taxes 18 times. that is important. small businesses -- it is the latinas that needs a health clinic and she is the one who will open it. it is the high school sophomore who is building facebook's competitor. they are the on to benares driving the american economy -- entrapenours.he

that is not who we are as a nation. let me tell you why. the eva who worked at wendy's needed a tax break. the eva who works on movie sets does not. [cheers and applause] president obama, he is fighting for changes that grow the economy from the middle out and help all americans succeed. jobs, education, health reform, the dream act. equal pay for women. president obama is moving us forward with opportunity today for prosperity tomorrow. mitt romney wants to take us back to yesterday. that is not going to work

because america was built by optimists. optimists like my friend amanda who recently started a business. she went to buy her website address. she found out somebody else on it but was not using it. my friend e-mailed the owner of the site and asked if she could buy it. the owner wrote back. she is a 13-year-old girl who shares amanda's name. she politely explained she could not give up the web site. why? because the under amanda plans to be president of the united states one day. [applause] she will need the website for her campaign. here is a little girl, 13-years old -- 13 years old, who believes she can build the american dream. here is an american -- here is a president who is building an america where that dream is possible. let's fight for the american

dream. amanda's, yours, mine, el of ours. we know how to do that. .et's reelect president obama [applause] ♪ >> settle down, montana. we have work to do. settle down. i know mitt romney. we are -- were governors at the same time.

we traveled together to iraq and afghanistan. spent a week with a guy any really get to know -- spend a week at a war zone with a guy and you get to know him. we traded stories about our early years. his as a missionary and mind as a scientist in libya and saudi arabia. we talked about family, religion, business, energy, war, and peace, and the future of america. i will tell you this. and a loyals a good man, american. but -- [laughter] he brought the wrong agenda to massachusetts and he is the wrong guy to be president of the united states.

governor mitt romney saddled massachusetts taxpayers with an additional $2.60 billion in debt and left them with the most debt per-capita of any state in america. in montana, that dog don't hunt. remember those words. i might ask you to say them. governor mitt romney cut higher education by 14% in his first year. which meant that college education skyrocketed for students in massachusetts. i guess that is ok if you can afford it. for the rest of us, that dog don't hunt. governor mitt romney raised taxes and fees by $750 million a year. i will let you in on a little

secret. when a politician does not want to be honest about a tax hike, he calls it a fee. mitt raised taxes, i mean fees, on mental health services, and even on milk. but here is the one that got under my saddle. he quadrupled the fee for a gun licence. -- license. maybe that is okay for a guy who hunts of varmints. for the rest of us, that dog won't hunt.

mitt, you cannot just etch-a- sketch away your record. debt up. new business starts, down. manufacturing, down. median household income, down. you know, if private equity mitt romney met governor mitt romney, he would do what he says he likes to do it. he would fire him and outsources job. let me tell you how we get her done in montana. clinton and arithmetic. and arithmetic.hmeti

-- clinton arithmetic. we have had surpluses every year i have been governor, averaging more than $400 million a year. we invested more new money in get this, we increased the percentage of adults with college degrees and faster than any other state. [applause] well, we cut more taxes for more people than any governor in montana history. we feed of republican tax increases. -- vetoed republican tax increases. our bond rating was upgraded. montana is moving in the right direction. so is america. [applause] when president obama took office, the economy was in free

fall. losing more than 800,000 jobs a month. since then, he has helped create four 0.5 million private sector jobs. 29 straight months of job growth. the stock market has doubled. energy production is up. the number of rigs drilling for oil has more than quadrupled. manufacturing jobs are coming back. not just because we are producing a record amount of natural gas, we have the best trained, hardest working labor force in the history of the world. [applause] we are demanding more from our schools. we are backing up that demand by investing more in teachers, increasing financial aid and doubling funding for pell

grants. while he was doing all that, president obama cut our taxes. he cut taxes 18 times for small businesses. he cut taxes by $3,600 for the typical middle-class family. that dog does hunt. governor romney, he said that finding osama bin laden was "not worth moving heaven and earth." tonight, bin laden is not on earth, sure is not in heaven. and thanks to the encourage -- to the courage of american special forces, osama bin laden is at the bottom of the ocean. [applause]

all four of my grandparents were immigrants. they homesteaded the montana prairie with nothing more than the clothes on their back. the hope in their hearts that their kids and grandkids would have a better future. they delivered on that hope, so has president obama. [applause] now, now it is our turn to deliver. not just for the president, but for our kids, our grandkids. this election is about their education, their health care, their freedom, their dignity, their hope, and their future. are we going to deliver? are we going to keep america moving forward? are we going to hire the right

to to finish the job for four more years? how many years? how many years? [crowd chanting "four more years"] let's get to work, america. god bless you and god bless the netted states of america. [applause] ♪ >> please welcome governor charlie crist of of florida. ♪ >> good evening. thank you. what an incredible night. optimism is in the air. what an honor to be here with

zero to stand with president barack obama. half a century ago, ronald reagan, the man whose optimism was inspiring to me, he said at one time, he did not leave the democratic party, the party left him. i can relate. i did not leave the republican party, it left me. [applause] then again, my friend did jeb bush recently noted that reagan himself would have been too moderate, too reasonable for today's gop. we face serious challenges in our country. we must create good, middle- class jobs so it can have an economy that is built to last. we must rebuild our roads and bridges and improve our schools. particularly important to me and

my state of florida, the challenge of saving medicare and social security so we can keep our promise to our seniors. [applause] there are common-sense solutions within our reach. if we only have leaders who are willing and enthusiastic to find common ground. no political party has a monopoly on that kind of leadership. as a former lifelong republican, it pains me to tell you that today's republicans and mitt romney and paul ryan are not up to the task. [applause] they are beholden to the my way or the highway belize, indebted to billionaires' to bankroll their advertisements, allergic to the idea of compromise. ronald reagan would not have stood for that.

barack obama does not stand for that. you and i will not stand for that. [applause] i will be honest with you, i do not agree with president obama about everything. i have gotten to know him. i have worked with him. the choice is crystal clear. when he took office, the economic crisis had already put my stick on the edge of disaster. the foreclosure crisis was hurting homeowners. our construction industry had come to a standstill. president obama saw what i saw, a catastrophe in the making. he took action. [applause] 1 of his first trips and office brought him to fort myers, florida. i was proud to embrace him and his plans to keep our teachers, police, and firefighters on the

job. [applause] well, that hug caused me more grief from my party then you can ever imagine. even as the republican party fought to stop him, this president showed his courage, invested in america, and saved our florida. [applause] two years later, florida and the gulf coast faced the worst environmental disaster in our nation's history. this time, a ruptured well spilled nearly 5 million barrels of oil into the gulf of mexico. president obama came to our rescue again. leading a massive cleanup effort and demanding accountability from those responsible. [applause] my friends, he did not see a red state, he did not see a

police state, he saw americans who needed help. once again, i saw the leader our country needs. [applause] you know, i used to play quarterback just down the road at wake forest. [applause] go deacons. my dad always told me, he said, it takes a cool head to win a hockey game. my friends, our country is in the middle of a hot game. we face serious challenges. meanwhile, our politics are defined by discord and discontent. never has it been harder for a president to keep a cool head. never has it been more important. i'd look around florida, i see a state kirsten with diversity and opportunity. -- a state bursting with diversity and opportunity.

i see two candidates who would cut investments on the middle class that are so important for our recovery. then i look at barack obama. i see a leader with a cool head, a caring heart, and an open mind. a president who has demonstrated that he is uniquely qualified to heal a divisions, rebuild our nation, and lead us to a brighter future. that is the leader florida needs. that is a leader american needs. that is the reason i am here tonight. not as a republican, not as a democrat, simply as an american who understands we must come together behind the one man who can lead the way for it in this challenging times, my president, your president, barack obama. god bless you and god bless america. thank you so much. [applause]

>> ladies and gentlemen, my name is carol glynn for oral -- geraldine ferraro. i stand before you to proclaim tonight america is the land where dreams can come true for all of us. our faith that we can shape a

better future is what the american dream is all about. the promise of our country is that the rules are fair. if you work hard and play by the rules, you can earn your share of america's blessing. ♪ ♪ >> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome senator john kerry of massachusetts.

♪ [applause] >> thank you. thank you. in this campaign, we have a fundamental choice. will rate protect our country and our allies, advance our interests, the battle where we must, and make peace where we can? or will we entrust our place in the world to someone who has not learned the lessons of the last decade? does not know much about foreign policy. he has all these advisers who know all the wrong things about foreign policy. he would rely on them. after all, he is the great outsource r.

i say to you, this is not the time to outsource the job of commander in chief. [applause] our opponents like to talk about american exceptional some. all they do is talk. they forget that we are exceptional, not because we say we are, but because we do exceptional things. we break out of the great depression, not win two world wars, save lives, pull people out of poverty, defend freedom, go to the moon, and produce exceptional people who give their lives for civil-rights and human rights, despite what you heard in tampa, an exceptional country does care about the rise of the oceans and the future of the planet. that is a responsibility from

the scriptures. that is a responsibility of the leader of the free world. the only thing exceptional about today's republicans is that without exception, they oppose everything that has made america exceptional in the first place. an exceptional nation demands exceptional leadership. it demands the leadership of an exceptional president. my fellow americans, that president is barack obama. [applause] just measure the disaster and disarray he inherited. a war of choice and iraq had become a war without end. a war of necessity in afghanistan had become a war of neglect. our alliances were shredded. our moral authority was in

tatters. america was isolated. our military was stretched to the breaking point. iran, marching towards a nuclear weapon, unchecked. osama bin laden was still plodding. it took president obama to make america lead like america again. [applause] it took president obama to restore our moral authority. it took president obama to end torture. the president understands that our values do not limit our power, they magnify it. he showed that global leadership is a strategic imperative for america, not a favor we do to other countries. president obama kept his promises. he promised to end the war in iraq. he has. our heroes have come home. he promised to end the war in

afghanistan responsibly, he is. our heroes are coming home. he promised to focus on al qaeda, he has. our forxes have a limited to more of its leadership in the last three years than all eight years that came before. after more than 10 years without justice, for thousands of americans murdered on 9/11, after mitt romney said it would be naive to go into pakistan to pursue the terrorist, it took president obama, against the advice of many, to give that order and finally rid of this earth of osama bin laden. [applause] ask osama bin laden if he is

better off now than he was four years ago. [applause] barack obama promised to stand with israel, to tighten sanctions on iran, and take nothing off the table. the other side has lied about where this president stands. the prime minister set the record straight. he said, our two countries have the same policy. our security corp. is unprecedented. when it comes to israel, i will take the word of israel's prime minister over mitt romney any day. [applause]

president obama promised to work with russia, to reduce the threat of nuclear weapons. to sign a historic treaty that does just that. he promised to lockdown nuclear materials around the world. he has done just that. he refused to accept the false choice between force without diplomacy and diplomacy with of force. when a brutal dictator promised to hunt down and kill his own people like rats, president obama enlisted our allies, build the coalition, shared the burden, today, without a single american casualty, gaddafi is gone and the people of libya are free. [applause] on one side, on one side of this campaign, we have a president who has made america lead like

america again. what is there on the other side? an extreme and expedient candidate who lacks the judgment so vital to the oval office. the most inexperienced foreign policy to some to run for president and vice president in decades. it is not fair to say that mitt romney does not have a position on afghanistan, he has every position. he was against setting a date for withdrawal. then he said it was right. then he left the impression, maybe it was wrong. he said it was tragic to leave iraq. then he said it was fine. he said we should have intervened in libya sinner. then he ran down a hallway to run away from reporters. then he said the intervention was too aggressive. then he said the world was a

better place because the intervention succeeded. talk about being for it before you were against it. [applause] mr. romney, mr. romney, here is a little of vice. before you debate barack obama on foreign policy, you better finish the debate with yourself. [applause] now, president mitt romney, three very hypothetical words that alienated our allies. it is what to call an overseas trip is when the trip all over

yourself overseas. it was not a goodwill mission, it was a blooper reel. but, a romney-ryan foreign policy would be anything but funny. every president of both parties has worked for nuclear arms control. not mitt romney. republican secretaries of state from kissinger to powell to rise, president bush, 71 senators, all supported president obama's new treaty. not mitt romney. he even blurted out the notion that russia is our number 1 geopolitical foe. sarah palin said she could see russia from alaska. mitt romney talks like he has only sin russia from watching -- seen russia from watching "rocky

iv." [applause] here is the choice in 2012, mitt romney, out of his depth abroad, out of the mainstream. barack obama, a president who is giving new life and truth to america's indispensable role in the world. a commander in chief who gives our troops the tools and training they need. the honor and help they have earned when they come home. a man -- [applause] a man who will never ask other men and women to fight a war without a plan to win the peace. [applause] let me say, let me say something else. let me say something else.

no nominee for president should ever fail in the midst of a war to pay tribute to our troops overseas in his acceptance speech. mitt romney was talking about america. they are on the front lines every day defending america and they deserve our thanks. [applause] some of us, some of us from a prior war remember coming home was not 0 is easy. president obama has made it his mission that we welcome our troops home with care and concern and the respect they deserve.

that is how an exceptional nations says thank you to its most exceptional men and women. mitt romney says he believes in america and that he will restore american exceptional osama. i have news for him, we already have an exceptional american as president. we believe in barack obama. thank you and god bless america. [applause] ♪ ♪

>> on veterans day, flag is raised on front porches. parades' weave their way down main street. speeches are given. we tell our veterans how grateful we are for their service. then we go back to our lives. these men and women serve with acreage we can barely imagine in places we can barely conceive, they go back to theirs. four years ago, a pact was renewed that honor in their service should not be about a single day but a single purpose. not about a national holiday, but national commitment. to honor the sacred trust we forge with every man and woman who chooses to put their life on the line to defend this country. >> the willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war should be directly proportional to how they perceive the veterans of

earlier wars are treated and appreciated. that was said by our first commander-in-chief, george washington. >> this is what they carried on patrol and iraq. dog tags. a 5 pound kevlar helmets. a carbine. these are the things they carried too. >> you think about home all the time. it is better than thinking about the mud walls. >> when it had said they were going to get us home, it was like, it will never happen. >> on behalf of a grateful nation, i am proud to finally say these two words, i know your families agree, welcome home.

>> i remember, i ran up to him and jumped into his arms. >> i will be grateful. >> we made the promise to defeat the enemy, we did. president obama made a promise to bring this home, he did. >> we had these matchbooks we were on patrol, on the front was a picture of osama bin laden. >> it was unbelievable. yeah, im on cspan now, but a >> i trust them. i trust the capacity. >> it was something the military unit rehearsed.

>> we said, go, go. >> i can report to the american peoplethn -- >> and registered it was singing. when i listened, it was americans who gathered across the street from the white house. they were singing the national anthem. >> think about the guy's thing i had served with. the guy's thing we have lost. >> job description, devastating al qaeda. take another osama bin laden. skills, leading, certain, sacrifice. references, the president of the united states. >> i believe that no one who

fights for this country should ever have to fight for a job when they come home. >> the administration has implemented several programs. >> the dedication is second to none. they will see through things to the end. >> i feel like they are telling me i can't do something. now they are telling me, is that ok? can you handle that? dodge anything you throw employers is nothing compared to the hot and women trade -- compared. >> the unemployment rate among veterans as falling. >> a helicopter will trigger a certain sound of an explosion and will -- i think about it. one of the definitions for a veteran, up to and including

[indiscernible] afghanistan and iraq, people had to honor that. the dodge is about a democratic responsibility. it is an american responsibility. >> it is easy to get what you need, to help those of us in need. >> wounded warriors are reluctant to reach out. they have really been aimed at strengthening military families. >> the real sacrifices made by people that won't ever come back. >> i thought you would tell me not to come anymore, but you

didn't. remember when i made you take your sister to her dance? i thought you would take me forever for that. remember when you would too old a kiss goodnight any more but i tried anyway. i thought you would push me away, but you didn't. there were so many things i wanted to thank you for when you came home. but you didn't. >> sometimes, you were denigrated when you should have been celebrated. it was a national shame that should never have happened. today, and we resolve that it will not happen again. >> when president obama spoke at the vietnam memorial --

>> they come from every corner of the country. their homes and their life, if you want to hurt the united states, you have to get through us. they stand up for freedom when they barely have the strength. four years ago, an attack was made. commitment would not end with a tour of duty. they deserve nothing less than they have turned a far more. >> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome retired four-star admiral of the united states navy.

>> today and every day, our military men and women serve our country with their actions and their deeds. the veterans standing with me, veterans of iraq and afghanistan, are part of a proud legacy. for those that defend us in the earliest days of our countries to the greatest generation of world war two. for those that serve been sacrificed in korea, vietnam, anywhere they have been needed. today's service men and women have been called the next great generation. they live up to that calling and everything they do. they have gone beyond the call of duty in every way one can imagine. i served in the united states navy for 37 years. i have heard plenty of folks

thank us for our service. we appreciate that gratitude. since the day he tucked office, the president have demonstrated that he respects and understands the challenges for those that wear a uniform. for every branch of the service. but for those in civilian clothes or the uniform, president obama and gives us a foreign policy worthy of the men and women on the stage. to ensure that wherever they serve, their uniform and dedication is respected. their service makes a difference for america. for every veteran that comes home wounded, the president invested in the v.a. and gave care to returning troops that

deserve that care. for every family waiting at home, the president, the first lady, and dr. jill biden are engaging communities to support those families. for every man and woman coming back to what the uncertain future, the president strives to help veterans apply their talents, expand their skills, and get good jobs. last year, we challenge american businesses to hire 100,000 veterans and military spouses. he and the first lady got businesses across the private sector to saigon, supported by tax credits -- sign on, supported by tax credits. the same businesses reported that they exceeded the goal by 25% ahead of schedule by almost a year.

they are committing to bring on a quarter million more new veteran jobs. and it is not just about finding new jobs, it is about giving these men and women the chance to learn the skills for the jobs tomorrow. that is why i am proud that the president is offering veterans the best education benefits since the original bill. this education is something that can and will change their lives. it guarantees american progress, vitality, and growth. my parents were members of the greatest generation. hi dad joined the army in 1940

as an enlisted man fixing bombers and world war two. he served in the strategic air command. another was a volunteer for the uso and later as a widow, she raised five children. in the years sense, i have been privileged elite and serve with members of this next great generation. i see in them tough, bribe, courageous and inspiring men and women. i see the country's future leaders. these service leaders have been to some of the bleakest corners of the globe. they know how good this country is and they know what america needs to the world and they are going to bring to us the next great moment in our nation's history because the president is standing with them.

tonight, we are standing here with you. we are standing with our president. the men and women on this stage are only a small sample of this amazing generation. americans from texas, for virginia, from florida, oregon, maine, new york, hawaii, north carolina. all across this great country. and so for them, what they represent, please stand with me and say thank you.

[chanting] >> usa! usa! usa! usa!

♪ >> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome antie flores. >> i am a student at miami dade college. when you grow up and a family where getting by is a struggle, college can seem like a dream for someone else. even if, like me, you love learning.

ages 16 to 24, 2.2 million did not go to college. more than 1 million don't even graduate from high school. the statistics say that i should not be here. the most someone like me should hope for is to get by, not to get ahead. but i am not a statistic. i am a young woman with a bright future. president obama and vice president by the end of this. they don't want any american student to except that education is a luxury or that opportunity is for someone else. they asked us to work hard and green bay. they work alongside us to make sure that those dreams come true. they all aspire to live the ideal middle-class lifestyle with the picket fence and the lemonade on the porch. president obama and vice

president divide and are helping kids like me build that dream. we all celebrate success. president obama and vice president biden helped us achieve it. we all know that education leads to opportunity. that education begins with a great teacher and every classroom. tonight, i have the honor of introducing an extraordinary educator. a lot of people know dr. jill biden as our nation's second lady. bu tshe -- but she has an even more important title. she is a teacher. she continued to educate. that is how strong her commitment is to her students. grade papers in the white house.

i had the distinct pleasure to meet her. i am fortunate to have teachers like her at miami dade college. she is full of compassion and dedication. that is how she makes a difference for students like me. a teacher like her can make the difference between being a statistic and being a success. between getting by and getting ahead. that is why i am studying to work with children i see someone making the kind of impact i want to make. please join me in welcoming my role model, dr. jill biden. ♪

>> hello! what a night, what a crowd. thank you, angie. i am so proud how far you have come. i am proud to stand before you tonight, not only has the wife of the vice-president, but as a full-time teacher and a military mom. i am here for our son and for all of our troops. he stood on the stage to introduce his father and soon after, he deployed to iraq for a year with the delaware army

national guard. tonight, thanks to the leadership of president obama and my husband, the war in iraq is over. i am also here tonight for my students. students like her that worked so hard to create a better life for themselves and their families. i have been a teacher for more than 30 years. into this day, i continue to teach full-time at a community college in northern virginia. not long after he was elected vice president, people started

questioning whether i could keep teaching. but not joe. he was there, standing by my side saying, of course you should. it is to you are. for me, being a teacher isn't just what i'd do. it is too i am. -- who i am. these issues are personal to me, and for the 37 years i have known joe. i have seen first hand is personal to him, too. people say that i did not agree to marry him until the fifth time he asked me. the truth is, i loved him from the start and i saw in him, the same character that i see in him today. i have seen his character in his

optimism. for families that have lost a loved one, kids struggling to find their way, workers out of a job. he always worked to give people a sense of hope. i have also seen his character in his determination. two decades ago when he started working on the violence against women act, domestic violence was often treated her as a private family matter rather than the crime is. but joe knew that he had to bring this issue out into the open. in the years since that bill has passed, i have had women tell me that their sisters or their friends would not be alive today if it weren't for him.

finally, i have seen his character in his heart. when i first met him, he had already seen a just how fragile life could be when he was 29 years old. he lost his first wife and baby daughter in a tragic car accident when they were out getting their christmas tree. the boys were critically injured. his life was shattered. but through his strong catholic faith and his fierce love for our boys, he found the strength to get back up. that is joe. that optimism, that determination, that big, strong

heart that drives him for work every day. it is what he learned as a young boy growing up with hard-working parents in scranton, pennsylvania. it is what makes him such a loving and supportive father of our three children. and it is what drives him today as he and president obama fight to strengthen the middle class that they grew up then. for as long as i have known him, he has never given up, never failed to see the possibilities, and never had any doubt about who he is fighting for. as long as he has the privilege of serving this nation, i know from the bottom of my heart that he will continue to fight for you every day. thank you. god bless our troops and our

military family. >> i like best about this country the people. there's nothing we can't do. there is still that feeling in america. that is the part i love about it. my mother thought the most important virtue was courage. she thought everything else came from that. the bravery reside in every heart and sunday, it will be

summoned. >> americans have some of the bravery that lives and our hearts. one by one. the family by family, community by community. proving once again that there is no quit in america. joe biden understands this. it is what you learn growing up in scranton, pennsylvania. >> it was a new place to grow up. we thought it was and still do think it is completely normal. of the probably 16 years i lived in that house, there was a relative et least 14 of those years living with us full time. my parents never doubted for a second but could be president of vice-president. there was this notion that nobody is better than you. you're no better than anyone else, but nobody is better than you.

and you can be anything you want to be. >> that sense of optimism is what he feels for america. >> he was taught the fundamental truths that make this country special. it defines what it is meant for middle-class in generations. >> middle class wasn't a number or net worth. it was more your values, that the idea that everyone in this country that works at it can do well and i own a home, be able to live in a safe neighborhood, send their kid to school, take care of their parents and maybe they can take care of themself. that is what this is all about. >> refer to many families, this is falling out of reach. the pain of the recession has cut deep. bedroom,their child's the sec, honey, i'm sorry, but

you can't play on the little league team this summer or you can't say in the choir or you can't, you know, carter roosevelt high school. i lost my job. we have got to move on. my dad made that war. think of how many people have made some version of the walk all across america. they're not looking for a handout. they are just looking for a shot. just a shot to get back in the game. and i think we owe them that shot. >> giving the middle class a shot has been the cause of this white house. from the moment they took the oath of office, the challenge has been enormous. it has been a partnership forged in fire. >> it turns out to be a singular opportunity to work with a guy like barack obama.

they trust each other, it is a completely candid relationship. i asked him why he wanted me and he said to help him govern. this guy has an incredible amount of character. he has a backbone like a ramrod and he makes his judgment based on what he thinks is good for the country. the last question he asks is the political consequences of >> he cares about the middle class, he knows what it is like a struggle, and he has carried that passion for the white house. >> preventing an economic collapse, rescuing the auto industry, passing historic health care reform, and eliminating osama and ending the war in iraq. have they have put the interests of the nation first. >> truly about growing the economy from the middle out. when you do it that way,

everybody does well. folks have a letter of. those that are striving to get to the middle class at the wealthy do very well. because the middle class has money in their pockets and they can go out and purchase things that make the economy grow. it is not only the american way, it is also economically the best way to grow our country. give a tax system that is basically fair, provide an environment where they can flourish. >> he never forgot where he came from and never lost sight of where we need to go. >> he has a sense of justice and fairness. i think that makes him fight even harder for people. >> maybe because he has known lost at a plane -- a claim that he has never been lied to the suffering of others. >> he has a sense of intuition,

he intuitively feels someone's pain in he knows what it is like to lose a wife and then the unspeakable, to lose a child. i think that is why people come back with him. >> he has been a man that supports the working class. >> he is here for us. >> roger. >> maybe it is because he has never doubted the american people that he has never doubted america's future. it has never been a safe bet to bet against america. i know i will get criticized by foreign leaders but it has never been a good bet to bet against america. >> we are fighting for the middle class and there is nobody i would rather have with me that joe biden.

>> he does teachers should be lifted up and not torn down. the son of a man that never doubted the american auto industry would end the war. it is the author of the violence against women act. he will stand against the abuse of power his whole career. he is the father of an iraq war veteran again, our sacred obligation to protect those that serve this nation. >> i can say i am more optimistic about america's chances today that i have been my entire life. >> and determination, resilience, optimism. that is the story of america and the story of ordinary people and extraordinary courage. and always moving towards a better day. joe biden knows that story. our vice-president, and joe biden.

>> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the united states vice- president, joe biden.

>> hello, my fellow democrats. and my favorite democrat, jill. i want to tell our kids were so incredibly proud of you. we admire the way with every single solitary young person, they are not all young, walking to your classroom. you not only to them, you give them confidence. you give me confidence. and the passion she brings trying to ease the burden on the families of our warriors. they know you understand them and it makes a gigantic difference.

but folks, i tell you what. it was worth of the track to hear my wife said what i have never heard her say before. she has always loved me. if that is the case, why did it take five times of asking you? and that is true. five times. i don't know what i would have done if you had said no the fifth time. i love you. your the love of my life and the life of my love. we have three incredible kids. my son, i want to thank you for putting my name in nomination to be vice president of the united

states by accept. states. i accept. with great honor and pleasure, i accept. thank you. thank you, my fellow democrats. i say to my fellow americans, my fellow americans, four years ago, a battered nation turned away from the failed policies and turns to a leader that they would know what lift our nation out of the crisis. a journey we haven't finished yet. and we know we still have more to do. but today, i say to my fellow citizens, in the face of the deepest economic crisis in our lifetime, this generation of americans has proven itself as

worthy as any generation before us. we present that same breath and determination. that same courage that has always defined what it means to be an american, has always defined all of you. together, we are on a mission to move this nation forward. from doubt and downturn to thomas and prosperity. a mission i guarantee you will complete. a mission we will complete. folks, but tonight, what i really want to do is tell you about my friend barack obama.

no one could tell it as well or as eloquently as michele. as you did a monday night. but i know him. tuesday obvious, i know him from a different perspective. i want to show you the character of leader that had what it cut when the american people who literally still had on the brink of a new depression. a leader that had what it takes to lead us over the next four years to a future as great as our people. i want to take you inside the white house to see the president as i see him every day. because i don't see him in sound bites. i walk 30 paces down the hall into the oval office and i see him and watch him in action.

four years ago, the middle class was already losing ground. and then, the bottom fell out. the financial crisis hit like a sledgehammer. all the people i grew up with. you remember the headlines. you saw some of them in the previews. highest job losses in 60 years. the economy on the brink. markets, it worldwide. from the very moment president obama sat behind the desk, resolute in the oval office, he knew he had not only to restore the confidence of a nation, but he had to restore the confidence of the whole world. and he also knew, he also knew that one false move could bring

a run on the banks or credit collapse. it would put another several million people out of work. the world needed a strong president with a steady hand, with the judgment and vision to see us through. day after day, night after night, i sat beside him as he made one gutsy decision after the other. to stop the slide and reverse. i watched him stand up to intense pressure and stared down have enormous challenges. the consequences of which were awesome. but most of all, i got to see firsthand what drove this man. his profound concern for the

average american. he knew that no matter how tough this decision, and he knew that families all over america sitting at their kitchen tables were literally making decisions for their family that were equally as consequential. we have been through a lot together these four years. and we learned about one another. a lot about one another. one of the things i learned is the enormity of his heart and i think he learned about me, the death of my loyalty to him. another thing that bound us together the past four years, we

had a pretty good idea of where all those families and americans in trouble were going through. in part because the families have gone through similar struggles. as a young man, they had to sit at the end of his mother's hospital bed. had watched her fight for the insurance company and i said i would have to leave for a while. i will be able to send for you and mom and jimmy and a vowel and everything is going to be fine.

for the rest of our lives, my sister and my brothers, my dad never failed to remind us that a job is about a lot more than a paycheck. it is about your dignity. it is about respect. it is about your place in the community. it is about being able to look your child in the eye and say, a honey, it is going to be ok. and mean it and know it is true. barack and i were growing up, there was an implicit understanding in america. that if he took responsibility, you would get a fair shot at a better life. and the values behind the bar again, the values that shaped

both of us and many of you, today. those same values are the guiding star. i have watched him. he has never wavered, he never backs down. he always steps of and he always asks in every one of those critical meetings the same, fundamental question. how is it going to affect the average american? how will this affect people's lives? that is what is inside this man. that is what makes him tick. that is who he is. and folks, and because of the decisions he has made. america has turned a corner.

it has created 4.5 million private-sector jobs in the last 29 months. they're both loving husbands and devoted fathers. there is a vastly different vision and a vastly different values set for the job. i want to talk about two things from a slightly different perspective. from my perspective. i want to focus on to crises and show you the character of leadership that each man that brings to this job.

i have had a ringside seat. a lot has been talked about and got love jennifer branham. wasn't she great? i love jennifer. but the first story i want to talk to you about is the rescue of the automobile industry. and let me tell you, from this man's ringside seat, let me tell you about how barack obama saved more than 1 million american jobs. in the first holidays that we took office, general motors and chrysler were literally on the verge of liquidation. if the president didn't act immediately, there wouldn't be any industry left to save. so we sat hour after hour in the

oval office. we sat, hour after hour. listen to senators, congressmen, outside advisers, and we listen to some of the following things. which shouldn't step up. the risks were too high. the outcome was uncertain. and the president patiently sat there and he listened. but he didn't see it the way they did. he understood something they did not get and one of the reasons i love him. he understood that this wasn't just about cars, it was about the people that built and made those cars. and about the america that those people bill. in those meetings, i often

thought about my dad. he was an automobile man. he would have been one of those guys all the way down the line, not on the factory floor, but one of those guys selling american cars to american people. i thought about what this crisis with of meant for the mechanics and the secretaries and the salespeople my dad managed for over 35 years. i know for certain that my dad, were he here today, he would be fighting for the president because the president fought to save the jobs of those people my dad cared so much about. ladies and gentlemen, my dad respected barack obama, would have respected barack obama had he been around. for having had the guts to stand up for the automobile industry

when so many others were prepared to walk away. when i look back now, on the president's decision, i think of another son of an automobile man. governor romney. he grew up in detroit. my data managers and his dad ran the entire automobile company. american motors. understand, in spite of that, he was willing to lead detroit go bankrupt. i don't think he is a bad guy. no, i don't think he is a bad guy. i am sure he grew up loving cars as much as i did. " what i don't understand and i don't think he understood that saving the automobile worker,

saving the industry, what it meant all of america. not just autoworkers. i think he sought it in terms of balance sheets and write offs. folks, the bain way they bring the firm the highest profits but it is not the way to lead our country from the highest office. when things hung in the balance, literally hung in the balance, the president understood that this was about a lot more hope than the automobile industry. this is about restoring america's pride. he understood why it would mean

to leave 1 million people without hope or work if he did not act. yet he also knew and understood the message that was sent around the world. the united states gave up on an industry that helped put america on the map and the first place. conviction, resolved. the barack obama. that is what saves the automobile industry. conviction, resolved. barack obama. luck. -- look. this president has shown the same result, the same steady hand in his role as commander in

chief. that brings me to the next illustration. the next crisis he had to face. in 2008, before he was president. barack obama made a promise to the american people. he said, if i have bin laden in our sights, we will take him out. he went on to say that it has to be our biggest national security priority. barack understood that the search for him was about a lot more than taking a monstrous man off the battlefield. it was about more than that. it was about correcting an unspeakable wrong. literally, it was about healing

unbearable wounds, a nearly unbearable wound in america's heart. and he also knew the message we had to send around the world. if you attack innocent americans, we will follow you to the end of the earth. most of all, president obama has an unyielding faith in that capacity and the capability of our special forces.

literally, the finest warriors in the history of the world. the finest warriors in the history of the world. we said a originally, only five of us. we sat in the situation room and the year before, how we listen, talked, we heard, and he listened to the risks and reservations about the raid. he asked the tough questions and listen to the doubts that were expressed. the admiral looked him in the eye and said, sir, we can get this job done. i sat next to him and i looked your husband. i knew, at that moment, he had made his decision. and his response was decisive.

he said, do it, and justice was done. governor romney did not see things that way. when he was asked about it in 2007, he said it is not worth moving heaven and earth and spending billions of dollars just to catch one person. but he was wrong. he was wrong. if you understood that america's heart had to be healed, you would have done exactly what the president dead and you would move heaven and earth to hunt

him down and to bring him to justice. four years ago, the only thing missing at this convention is my mom. she was still with us, sitting in the stadium in denver. i quoted one of her favorite expressions. she said, joey, bravery reside in every heart and the time will come when it must be summoned. ladies and gentlemen, i am here to tell you what i think you already know. i watched it up close. and bravery reside in the heart of barack obama. i witnessed him some and its. this man has courage in his soul, compassion in his heart,

and they spite of steel. but because of all the actions they tuck, because of the determination of american workers and the unparalleled bravery of special forces, we can proudly say what you have heard me say the last six months. osama bin laden is dead and general motors is alive. that's right. one man. we know we have more work to do. we know we are not there yet. but not a day has gone by in the last four years when i haven't been grateful, as an american, the barack obama is our

president because he has the courage to make the tough decisions. speaking of tough decisions, last week, we heard at the republican convention, we heard the opponent pledge that they, too, had the courage to make the tough calls. that is what they said. but folks, in case you didn't notice, i say to my fellow americans, they didn't have the courage to tell you what calls they would make. they never mentioned any of that. mrs. robinson, you watched from home, i guess. you heard them talk about how

they cared so much about medicare. how much they wanted to preserve its. that is what they told you. let's look at what they didn't tell you. what they didn't tell you is that the plan to have already put down on paper would immediately cut benefits of for more than 30 million seniors already on medicare. what they didn't tell you what is the plan they are proposing would cost medicare to go bankrupt by in 2016, and what they really didn't tell you is that if you want to know, they are not for preserving medicare at all. there for a new plan called voucher care. look, folks. that's not courage or truthful. in tampa, they talked with great

urgency about the nation's debt and the need act, to act now. not when one single time did they tell you that they rejected every plan put forward by us, by the bipartisan some symbols commission. or by any other respected group. they are not for any of them. why? because they are not prepared to do anything about the debt if it contained even $1. i am not exaggerating. $1 or 1 cent in new taxes for millionaires. that is not courage and that is not fair.

in a sense, this can be reduced to a single notion. the two men seeking to lead this country over the next four years have fundamentally different divisions and have completely different value sets. governor romney believes that the global economy and it doesn't matter much where american companies invest or where they create jobs. as a matter of fact, in his budget proposal and his tax proposal, he cause for a new territorial tax. the experts have looked at it and they acknowledge it will create 800,000 new jobs, all of them overseas. all of them. and what i found fascinating, the most fascinating thing i found last week was when governor romney said that as president, he would take a job is to work. it is going to have to be a

foreign trip. it will. president obama knows that creating jobs in america, keeping jobs in america, bringing jobs back to america is what his job is all about. that is what presidents do, or at least supposed to do. the governor believes it's ok to raise taxes by $2,000 and ordered to pay for another $1 trillion tax cut for the very wealthy. president obama knows there is nothing decent or fair about asking people with more to do less and with less to do more. governor romney believe that kids like our dreamers, those immigrants' children were brought to america's shores through no fault of their own,

he thinks they are a drag on the american economy. president obama believes those kids did not choose to come here, but they have chosen to do right by america and it is time for us to do right by them. governor romney looks at the notion of equal pay in terms of the company's bottom line. president obama knows that making sure our daughters and sons is the fathers bottom line. i kind of expect that all that from you, but one thing truly

protect me at their convention purine -- perplexed me at their conventionl . they seem to think that you create a culture of dependency when you provide a young qualified kid from working class family a loan to get to college or the job training program in a new industry forlost his job bef outsourcing. that is not how we look at it. that is not how americans ever looked at it. what he does not understand is that all of these men and women are looking for is a chance to acquire the skills to provide for their families so they can hold their heads high and a lead independent lives with dignity. that is all they are looking for. look. [applause]

it literally amazes me they do not understand that. you know, i told you at the outset the choice is stark. two different visions and a value sets. the difference is reduced to be a fundamental difference at its core. you, we, most americans have incredible faith in the decency and hard work of the american people. we know what has made this country. it is the american people. four years ago we were hit hard at. you saw your retirement accounts drained, jobs lost a round the line. what did you do? what you have always done. you fought back. you did not give up, you got up. you are the ones. you are the reasons why we are still better position than any

country in the world to lead the 21st century. you'd never quit on america. you deserve a president who will never quit on you. [cheers and applause] there is one more thing that. a america is not a in decline. america is not a in decline. gentlemen, never, ever -- it has never been a good bet to bet against the american people. never.

[cheers and applause] america is coming back. we are not going back. we have no intention of downsizing the american dream. [cheers and applause] never. never a good bet. ladies and gentlemen, in a moment we are going to hear from a man whose whole life is a testament to the power of that dream and whose presidency is the best hope to secure the dream for our children. you see, we see a future -- we really honest to god do. we see a future where everybody

does their part and has a part. a future where we depend more on clean energy. a future where we are number one in the world again and college graduation. we promote the private sector, not to the privileged sector. and a future where women once again control their own choices, their destiny, and their own health care. [cheers and applause] ladies and gentlemen, barack and i see a future where nobody is forced to live in the shadows of intolerance. [cheers and applause]

folks, we see a future where america leads not only by the example of our power, but the power of our example. where we bring our troops home from afghanistan just as we probably did from iraq. a future where we fell the only truly sacred obligation we have as a nation. the only truly sacred obligation we have is to prepare those who we send to war and care for them when they come home from war. tonight i want to acknowledge --

i want to acknowledge as we should every night to the incredible that we owed to the family of those 6473 fallen angels. those 49,746 wounded. thousands critically. thousands who will need help for the rest of their lives. folks, we must never, ever forget their sacrifice. always keep them in our care and prayers. my fellow americans, we now find ourselves at the hinge of history. the direction we turn is

literally in your hands. it has been a truly great honor to serve p.o. and to serve with barack who has always stood up with you. i have seen him tested and i know his command and faith. i also know the incredible confidence he has in all of you. i know this man. yes, the worker recovery is not yet complete, but we are on our way. the journey of hope is not yet finished, but we are on our way. the cause of change is not fully accomplished, but we are on the our way. i say to you with absolute confidence, in america's best days are ahead and, yes, we are on our way. [cheers and applause]

in that light of that, for the values that defined as, for the ideals that inspired as, there is only one choice. that choice is to move forward and finish the job and re-elect president barack obama. [cheers and applause] god bless you all. may god protect our troops. god bless you. thank you. [cheers and applause]

♪

>> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome senator dick durbin from illinois. [applause] >> thank you. it is and honored to be here tonight. eight years ago in boston, i introduced you to a state senator from illinois. [cheers and applause] he had a name that was hard to pronounced, and loretta and michele and i stood on the side of the stage and wondered if you would accept his message about the future of this party and you

did. four years later in denver, i asked you to give this man the party's nomination for president. tonight i asked you and joining me in giving president barack obama for more years to finish the job he started. [cheers and applause] i was there. four more years. i was there --many of you were with me. it was a cold january afternoon when barack obama lifted his hands from abraham lincoln's bible and a look out on an america facing an economic collapse. the last four years have been hard.

to many families are still struggling. today the economy is beginning to recover. businesses are expanding. a maraca is coming back. -- america is cmoing back. our friends gathered in tampa and give us a message last week. they said, remember, we are all in this a long. the real builders never need a helping hand. democrats know better. america knows better. history and this president have shown us we are stronger when we are all in this together. [cheers and applause] i invite them, come to belvidere, ill. and beat 5000 proud chrysler uaw workers. [cheers and applause]

one business leader who has been referenced a few times tonight said "let them go bankrupt." barack obama said "let them go back to work," and they did. come and me to the working families all across america who now have a chance at affordable health care. at one time a governor thought that was a good idea in massachusetts. president obama and millions of american families think it is a great idea for america. this president is focused on more than opportunity. he is focused on justice. i am proud to have been there when he signed his first bill as president of the united states to end discrimination against women in the work place in honor of lilly ledbetter. i will tell you, i cannot

remember a more touching ceremony when this president gathers together to finally eliminate the discrimination of n't ask, don't tell in our military. it was 11 years ago that i introduced a little bill known as the dream act. [cheers and applause] i will tell you, my life has been changed by the inspiration of these young men and women who simply want to earn their way into a america. we have fought the filibuster's in the senate, but we are lucky -- it took president obama to finally bring these young people out of the shadows into the america they have always called home. [cheers and applause] it was 150 years ago that

another president from illinois brought to justice to his day with the mn some patience proclamation. -- emancipation proclamation. his critics told him he went too far. here is what abraham lincoln said. i hope to stand firm enough not to go backwards. we cannot build a better, stronger fair america by going backwards. we must walk forward together. with president obama and the vice president joe biden, in the white house, we will. president obama, your values, your vision, your commitment to justice are still worth fighting for. thank you. [cheers and applause]

♪ >> we have been through a lot together. we have known tough times before. what carries us through and helps us endure, what are the qualities so essential to us in the leaders that occupied this

office? >> he did something snowing that would not be popular in the short run but was laid the foundation for recovery. he did what the government is supposed to do. >> do not rush to the automobile industry appeared it was overwhelming to look at the polling number. >> a country in the midst of a financial crisis that nobody knew the depths of the challenges that were coming. he had a sense. >> my grandparents came out of the depression. they knew what it was like for people not to have worked. we all understand work as something more than just a paycheck. what gives you dignity. it gives you a sense of purpose. >> he said, you guys have to work together and everybody has to have some scanned in the game. >> everybody said, that will

never work. >> 80,000 more people working in the car business than before the restructuring was passed. >> they were middle-class jobs. >> we have gone from an economy shedding jobs to one that consistently is creating jobs at all sectors. every night he is up until 1:00 or 2:00 in the morning with his big stack of briefing books. he reads letters from people he gets all over from america. they are some of the most informative pieces of material that he gets that keeps him grounded. anybody who has kids knows that no matter what you do, your kids still think they are the most important people in the room. he is the last person to be asked "how is your day, dad?" he is an afterthought.

>> he never starts a conversation by saying, "what is the best political decision here? what will help us the most?" never. >> he would not back out just because it got hard and it did not poll well. that is never been who he is and is not how he will govern this country. >> when my mother got cancer, it drained all of her resources. >> watching your mother die of something that could have been prevented, that is a tough thing to deal with. >> the reason he pushed ahead knowing there could be horrible consequences for him is that health care costs have gone up three times the rate of inflation. this is a huge economic issue. we spend 17% on health care.

>> anybody who gets medical care, hundreds of thousands of dollars. imagine working class moms opening up that kind of bill. with somebody sending that to her with a straight face. that understanding of that reality for millions of americans drove him to make sure this legislation got past. it takes a conscious effort to stay connected with what is going on and people's lives. >> this was a matter of principle. he ran on it. he said he would do it. he did it. >> you hire the president to make the calls when nobody else can do it. he had to decide. one thing george bush said that is right, the president is the

decider in chief. but we are only 50% sure osama bin laden was in that compound. i had 100% confident in the navy seals. >> i sat in the room when we were getting feeds on what was going on at the time. he sat there resolute, concerned, just watching. we got him. confirm it. he came to explain to everybody the next day what happened. this is a guy who has a backbone like a ramrod. >> good evening. tonight i can report to the american people into the world -- >> he took the harder and the more honorable path. the one that produced in my opinion the best results.

when i saw what had happened, i thought to myself, i hope that is the call i would have made. that was just the right thing to do. >> we have a long way to go. with every new beginning, every home coming, every step forward, we remember who we are. >> what is really allowing the economy to heal and get us moving again is the resilience from the strength and character of the american people. they did not quit. they do not give up. partly because of families. partly because of communities, patriotism, and pride in the country, they keep going.

that is the incredible gift of the american people keep giving back to me in this job. [cheers and applause] >> thank you so much. tonight i am so thrilled and honored and so proud to introduce the love of my life, the father of our two and girls, and the president of the united states of america, barack obama. [cheers and applause]

>> thank you. [cheers and applause] thank you.

thank you. thank you so much. thank you. [chanting "four more years!"] thank you. thank you very much, everybody. thank you. michelle, i love you so much. a few nights ago, everybody was reminded of just what a lucky man i am. [cheers and applause]

melia and sasha, we are so proud of the. [applause] yes, you do have to go to school in the morning. [laughter] joe biden, thank you for being the very best vice-president i could have ever hoped for. and be in a strong and loyal friend it. [cheers and applause] madam chairwoman, delegates, i accept your nomination for president of the united states. [cheers and applause]

[chanting "four more years!"] the first time i addressed this convention in 2004, i was a younger man. a senate candidate from illinois who spoke about hope. not blind optimism, but hope in the face of difficulty. hope in the face of uncertainty. that faith in the future that pushed this nation forward even when the odds are great. even when the road is long the. eight years later, that hope has been tested. tested by the cost of war, one

of the worst economic crises in history, and by political gridlock that left us wondering if it is possible to tackle the challenges of our time. i know campaigns can seem small and even silly at times. trivial things become big distractions. serious issues become sound bites. the truth gets buried under an avalanche of money and advertising. if you are sick of hearing me approve this message, believe me, so am i.. [applause] when all is said and done, when you pick up the ballot to vote, you will face the clearest choice of any time in a generation. over the next few years, the

decisions will be made in washington on jobs, the economy, taxes and deficits. energy, education, war and peace. decisions that will have a huge impact on our lives and on our children's lives for decades to come. on every issue, the choice you face will not be between two candidates or parties. it will be a choice between two different paths for america. two fundamentally different visions for the future. ours is a fight to restore the values that built the largest middle-class and the strongest economy the world has ever known. [applause] the values my grandfather defended as a soldier. the values that grow my grandmother to work on a bomber assembly line while he was gone.

they knew they were part of something larger. a nation that triumphed over fascism and a depression. a nation where the most innovative businesses turned out the world's best products. everybody shared in the pride and success. my grandparents were given the chance to go to college by their own home, and fulfil the basic bargain at the american story. responsibility will be rewarded. everybody gets a fair shot. everybody plays by the same rules from main street to wall street to washington, d.c. [applause] i ran for president because i saw that basic bargain slipping away. i began my career helping

people in the shadow of a shuttered steel mill at a time when too many good jobs began to move overseas. by 2008 we saw nearly a decade where families struggle by paychecks that did not rise with costs that kept rising. people racking up debt to pay the mortgage, tuition, gas in the car, or food on the table. when the house of cards collapsed, millions of innocent americans lost their jobs, homes, life savings, a tragedy from which we are still fighting to recover. now, our friends down in tampa at the republican convention where more than happy to talk about everything they think is wrong with america. they did not have much to say about how they would make their right. they want your vote, but they do not want you to know their

plans. that is because all they have to offer is the same prescriptions they have had for the last 30 years. have a surplus? try a tax cut. the deficit too high? try another. feel a cold coming on? take two tax cuts, rollbacks of regulations and call us in the morning. [cheers and applause] now, i have cut taxes for those who need it. middle-class families, small businesses, but i do not believe another round of tax breaks for millionaires will bring good jobs to the shores or pay down deficits. i do not believe firing teachers or kicking students off of

financial aid will help the economy. after all we have been through, i do not believe rolling back regulations on wall street will help the small business woman expand or the laid-off construction worker keep his home. we have been there. we have tried that. we are not going back. we are moving forward, in america. [cheers and applause] i will not pretend the path i am offering is quick or easy. i never have. you did not elect me to tell you what you wanted to hear, you elected me to tell you the truth. [applause] the truth is it will take more than a few years to solve challenges that have built up

over decades. it will require shared responsibility and the bold persistent experimentation that franklin roosevelt pursued during the only crisis worse than this one. those of us to carry on his party's legacy should remember not every problem can be remedied from another government program from washington. our problems can be solved. our challenges can be met. the path reoffer may be harder, leads to a better place. i am asking you to choose that future. and goals in manufacturing, energy, education, national security and the deficit. real achievable plans that will lead to new jobs, more opportunity and rebuild on a stronger foundation. that is what we can do a in the next four years and that is why

i am running for a second term as president of the united states. [cheers and applause] we can choose a future where we export more products and outsource fewer jobs. after a decade that was defined by what we bought and borrowed, we are getting back to basics and doing what america has always done best. we are making things again. i have met workers in detroit and toledo who feared they would never build a another a american car. today they can not rebuild them fast enough because we reinvented an auto industry that is back on top of the world.

i have worked with business leaders who are bringing jobs back to a america not because our workers make less pay but because we make better products. we work harder and smarter than anybody else. i signed trade agreements helping companies sell more goods to millions of customers. goods stamped with three proud words "made in america." [ crowd chanting "usa!"] after a decade of decline, this country created over half of a million of manufacturing jobs in the last two and a half years. now you have a choice. we can get more tax breaks to corporations to ship jobs

overseas or reconsider rewarding companies that create new jobs and train new workers here in the united states of america. [cheers and applause] we can help small businesses, double their exports. if we choose this path we can create 1 million new manufacturing jobs in the next four years. you can choose that future. you can choose the path where we can control more of our own energy. after 30 years of inaction, we raised fuel standards so by the middle of the next decade cars and trucks will go twice as far on a gallon of gas. we have doubled our use of renewable energy. thousands of americans have jobs building wind turbines and long- lasting batteries. we have cut will imports by 1 million barrels a day, more than

any administration in recent history. today the united states of america is less dependent on the foreign oil than at any time during the past two decades. [cheers and applause] now, you have a choice between a strategy that reverses the process or one that builds on it. we have to open millions of new acres for oil and gas exploration in the last three years and we will open more. i will not let oil companies right to this country's energy plan or in danger coastlines or collect another $4 billion in corporate welfare from tax payers. we are offering a better path. [cheers and applause] we are offering a better path where we -- a future where we

invest in the wind, solar, clean coal, with farmers and scientists tarnishing -- harnessing biofuels. farms and factories that weighs less energy where we develop 100 years' supply of natural gas right beneath our feet. we can cut oil imports in half by 2020 and support more than 600,000 new jobs in natural gas alone. [applause] yes, my plan will continue to reduce the carbon pollution heating our planet because climate change is not a hoax. more drought, floods, and wildfires are not a joke. they are a threat to our children's future, and in the selection you can do something about it. -- this election you can do something about it.

[cheers and applause] you can choose a future where more americans have a chance to build the skills they need to compete. no matter how old they are or how much money they have. education was the gateway to opportunity for me. it was the gateway for michelle. it was the gateway for most of you. more than ever, it is the gateway to a middle-class life. for the first time in a generation nearly every state has answered the call to raise the standards in teaching and learning. some of the worst schools have made gains in math and reading. students are paying less for college today because we finally took on a system that wasted billions of taxpayer dollars on the banks and lenders. now you have a choice. weekend that education, or we

can decide in the united states of america no child should have dreams deferred because of a crowded classroom or a crumbling school. no family should set aside a college acceptance letter because they do not have the money. no company should look for workers overseas because they cannot find somebody with the right skills at home. that is not our future. [cheers and applause] a government has a role in this. teachers must inspire. principles must lead. parents must instill a thirst for learning. students, you have to do the work. together i promise you we can out educate and out compete any nation on earth. help me recruit 100,000 a math

and science teachers within 10 years and improve early childhood education. help give 2 million workers the chance to learn schools -- skills at their community college that will lead to a better job. help us work with colleges and universities to cut in half the growth of tuition costs over the next 10 years. we can meet that goal together. you can choose that future for america. [cheers and applause] that is our future. in a world of new threats and new challenges, you can choose leadership that has been tested and proven. four years ago i promise to end the war in iaq. we did. [cheers and applause] we promised to refocus on the terrace to actually attack us

on 911, and we have it. we have stopped the taliban's momentum, and in 2014 our longest war will be over. a new tower rises over the new york skyline. osama bin laden is dead. [cheers and applause] tonight we pay tribute to the americans who still served and harm goes away. we are forever in debt to a generation that made this country safer. we will never forget you. so long as i am commander in chief. we will sustain the strongest

military the world has ever known. when you take off the uniform, we will serve you as well as you have served us because nobody who fights for the country should have to fight for a job or a roof over their head or the care that they need when they come home. [cheers and applause] around the world we have strengthened old alliances and forge new coalitions to stop the spread of nuclear weapons. we reasserted our power across the pacific and stood up to china on behalf of our workers. we have advance the rights and dignity of all human beings, men and women, christians and ews.ims and juic terrorist plots must be

disrupted. you're opposed the crisis must be contained. our commitment to israel's security must not waver and neither must our pursuit of peace. the iranian government must face a world united against its nuclear ambitions. the historic change across the arab world must not be defined by the age of extremists but by the hopes and aspirations of ordinary people reaching for the same rights we celebrate here today. now, we have a choice. my opponent and his running mate are new to foreign policy. from all that we have seen and heard, they want to take us back to an era of blustering and blundering that cost america so dearly.

you do not call russia our number one enemy unless you are still stuck in a cold war mindset. you might not be ready for diplomacy with beijing if you cannot visit the olympics without insulting our closest ally. [cheers and applause] my opponent said it was tragic to end the war in iraq. he will not tell us how he will end the war in afghanistan. i have, and i will. while my opponent will spend more money on military hardware and that our joint chiefs do not even want, i will use the money we are no longer spending on were to pay down debt and put more people back to work,

rebuilding roads, bridges, and schools. it is time to do some nation building right here at home. [cheers and applause] you can choose a future where we reduce our deficit, without sticking it to the middle class. independent experts say my plan would cut the deficit by $4 trillion. last summer i worked with republicans in congress to cut $1 billion of in spending. those of us to believe government can be a force for good should work harder than anybody to reform it so it is leaner, more efficient, and more responsive to the american people. [applause] i want to reform the tax codes

so it is simple, fair, and asks the wealthiest households to pay more at over $250,000. the same rate we had when bill clinton was president and our economy created millions of jobs, the biggest surplus in history, and a whole lot of millionaires to boot. i am still eager to reach an agreement based on the principles of my bipartisan that commission. no party has a monopoly on wisdom. no democracy works without compromise. i want to get this done, and we can get it done. when gov. romney and his friends in congress tell us, we can lower the deficit by spending trillions more on new tax breaks for the wealthy, well, what did bill clinton call it? you do the arithmetic. you do the math.

[applause] i refuse to go along with that. as long as i am president, i never will. [cheers and applause] i refuse to ask middle-class families to give up their deductions for owning a home or raising their kids just to pay for another millionaire's tax cuts. i refuse to ask students to pay more for college or kick children out of head start programs to eliminate health insurance for millions of americans who are poor and elderly or disabled, also those with the most can pay less. -- all so those with the most can pay less. i am not going along with that. [cheers and applause] i will never turn of medicare into a voucher. no american should ever have to

spend their golden years at the mercy of insurance companies. they should retire with the care and dignity that they have earned it. we will reform and strengthen medicare for the long call, but we will do it by reducing the cost of health care, not by asking seniors to pay thousands of dollars more. we will keep the promise of social security by taking the responsible steps to strengthen it, not by turning it over to wall street. [applause] this is the choice we now face. this is what the election comes down to. over and over we have been told by our opponents that bigger tax cuts and fewer regulations are the only way. since government cannot do everything, it should do almost

nothing. if you cannot afford health insurance, hope that you do not get sick. [laughter] if a company reebok -- releases toxic pollution into the air your children burry, that is the cost of progress. if you cannot afford to start a business or go to college, take my opponent's advice and borrow money from your parents. [laughter] [applause] you know what? that is not who we are. that is not what this country is about. as americans we believe we are endowed by our creator with certain inalienable rights, rights that no man or government can take away. we insist on personal responsibility and we celebrate individual initiative. we are not entitled to success, we have to earn it. we honor the strivers, the risk takers, the of entrepreneurs who

have been the driving force behind the free enterprise system. we also believe in something called citizenship. [cheers and applause] citizenship. a word at the very heart of our founding. a word at the essence of our democracy. the idea that this country only works when we accept certain obligations to one another and to future generations. we believe when a ceo pay is a bottom workers enough to buy the cars that they build, the whole company does matter. -- automobile workers enough to buy the cars they build, the whole company does matter. -- better.

we believe the little girl offered any escape from poverty by a great teacher or grant for college could become the next steve jobs, or the president of the united states. it is in our power to give her that chance. [cheers and applause] we know that churches and charities can often make more of a difference then a poverty program a lawn. we do not want handouts for those who refuse to help themselves and we do not want bailouts for banks that break the rules. [applause] we do not think government can solve all of our problems. we do not think that the government is the source of all of our problems any more than our welfare recipients or

corporations or unions or immigrants or gays or any other group we are told to blame for our troubles. [cheers and applause] because america, we understand this democracy is ours. we, the people, recognize that we have responsibilities. our destinies are bound together. a freedom that asks only what is in it for me, a freedom without a commitment to others without love or charity or duty or patriotism is unworthy of our founding ideals and those who died in their defense. [cheers and applause]

as citizens we understand that america is not about what can be done for us, it is a about what can be done by us, together, through the hard and frustrating but necessary work of self governance. that is what we believe it. so you see, the election four years ago was not about me. it was about you. my fellow citizens, you were the change. you are the reason there is a little girl with a heart disorder in phoenix that will get the help she needs because an insurance company will not limit her coverage. you did that. [applause] you are the reason a young man

in colorado of who never thought he would be able to afford his dream of earning a medical degree is about to get that chance. you made that possible. [cheers and applause] you are the reason a young immigrant who went to school here and grew up here and pledged allegiance to our flag will no longer get deported from the only country she has ever called home. our soldiers will not be kicked out of the military because of who they are or who they love, how thousands of families have been able to see if loved ones that served as, welcome home. you did that. you did that. you did that. if you turn a way now, if you turn away now and you buy into

the cynicism that the change we fought for is impossible, well, change will not happen. if you give up on the idea of your voice can make a difference, then other voices will fill the void that. lobbyists, special interests, people with $10 million checks trying to buy this election and make it harder for you to vote, washington politicians who want to decide who you can marry or control health care choices women should be making for themselves. [cheers and applause] only you can make sure that does not happen. only you have the power to move us forward. you know, i recognize that times

have changed since i first spoke at this convention. times have changed, and so have i.. i am no longer just a candidate, i am the president. [cheers and applause] that means i know what it means to send young americans into battle. i have held in my arms mothers and fathers of those who did not return. i have shared the pain of families who have lost their homes in the frustration of workers who have lost their jobs.

if the critics are right that i made all my decisions based on polls, i must not be very good at reading. while i am very proud of what we have achieved together, i am far more mindful of my own feelings, knowing exactly what lincoln meant when he said i have been driven to my knees many times by the overwhelming conviction that i have no place else to go. [applause] as i stand here tonight, i have never been more hopeful about america. not because i think i have all of the answers, not because i am not even about the magnitude of the challenges, i am hopeful because of you. the young woman i met at a science fair to one national recognition for her biology